Stop the Presses!
by Paper Plane Brigade
Summary: Just how did the Stone Canyon Trio become such great Rangers? By dealing with competent villains, mass destruction, stalkers with crushes, raging hormones, unnecessary drama, angst, and oh, the awkwardness. MMPR S2-3 AU; OCs abound!
1. Episode One

**A/N:** So, this is an idea that's been floating around in my head for a little over a year now, and I'm really excited to share it with all of you. The story will have a lot of elements that parody the show, especially in the beginning chapters (because frankly, I really can't help myself), but will start to head into a more darker and edgier direction in later chapters. Also, this is a fic in which OCs are an integral part of the plot, as mentioned in the summary, so to people who aren't partial to them, thanks for checking this out anyway. If you like what you read, please leave a review; they're much appreciated!

Disclaimer: I own nothing and no one, save for my OCs. If I did, I'd be rich. Rich, I tell you!

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><p><strong><em> 1. Official Unofficial Business<br>_**

It was no secret that Angel Grove was the moral center of California – perhaps the entire United States. Instead of spending all their time partying, slacking off, or fulfilling their typical archetypes, teenagers did practically all the work in maintaining the city and the ethical consciousness. They planted gardens, cleaned up litter and waste sites, organized community outreach programs (_especially_ for kids), stopped the demolition of historical landmarks, worked for and gave to charity, studied hard enough to make their high school's API the highest in the state, taught extracurricular classes, treated _everyone_ with respect (well, except for the few bad seeds, of course), entered science and art fairs, held dances with simply _stylin' _tunes, hung out at the same youth center and park every day, and did we mention that six of them saved the world daily from aliens?

It's remarkable that most of them came home in time for dinner.

No wonder it was the city chosen to represent the US in the 1994 Teen Peace Summit – because no one knew the issues that plagued the world better than adolescents. It was incredibly exciting for the city as a whole. After all, the only thrilling thing that had happened lately was the Rita Repulsa attack, and while it did result in the arrival of the Power Rangers, it certainly wasn't a good thing. Having the chance to better the world instead of just standing by and watching it be destroyed would be a nice change of pace. However, there were only three spots available for the US, and tension was high over who would be selected. The smartest? The sweetest? The prettiest? Oh, it didn't matter; they all seemed to posses those qualities.

The trepidation was still enough to paralyze the teens, most of whom were gathered in the Juice Bar on the penultimate Saturday of the announcement. Those who had gotten there early enough were crowded around Ernie's sole television set; the rest were either straining to see over each others' shoulders, or just hovering around the tables, resigned to just hearing the news. The report began a few minutes after four, and everyone in the building ceased their chatter – except Bulk and Skull, of course, but they couldn't be expected to ever shut up.

"Out of thousands of entrants, three names were announced today as the lucky students invited to attend the World Peace Summit in Switzerland. The three youths will meet and then travel with teens from all over the world to discuss global problems that effect all of us, young and old."

"Excuse me, please," called a nasally voice, as a thick head of greasy black hair poked out of the crowd and slowly made its way to the bar. "Oh, please, move aside." It stopped behind two unnaturally tall boys. "_Move it_, subordinates." It was trying to take on a demanding tone, but just sounded pathetic. However, the boys did move aside, and a stick-thin boy with think, square-rimmed glasses resting on the the tip of his pointy nose pressed himself into the bar, staring intently at the TV screen.

"Hunger, pollution, poverty, cultural barriers, and education are among the topics on a very busy agenda for these young people. They'll be visited by scientists, politicians, and academiants as they try to understand these issues and offer their perspective on solutions for world peace."

" 'Academiants' isn't even an actual word. Very unprofessional for an anchorman, tsk tsk tsk," the boy muttered, shaking his head and sniffing loudly. A few people behind him shushed him, but he just waved them off. "Juveniles...commentary is a sign of intelligence."

"The three teens from Angel Grove are Jason Lee Scott, Zack Taylor, and Trini Kwan."

"Aha! Interesting choices indeed." As the patrons began to both gush and steam over the report, the boy power-walked though a break in the crowd and nearly tripped over his feet as he tried to reach the exit. However, he saw the need to press himself against the lockers as a large chunk of the group stampeded out of the Youth Center, probably to go angst in their bedrooms or cry to their mothers over how they hadn't been chosen. Scoffing at the thought, he brushed off his wrinkled orange t-shirt, and detached a walkie-talkie from his belt. "Co-Ed, this is Eagle-Ed, do you receive my transmission?"

Some static came through the speaker, until a feminine voice cleared her throat on the other line. "Melvin, do we really have to use code names?"

Melvin rolled his eyes. "Official business, _Lilly_. Co-Ed, I repeat, this is official business, over."

Lilly let out a long sigh. "Eagle-Ed, what is your business? ...Over."

"Identities of delegates revealed. Coverage required ASAP."

"No duh, I was watchi- uh, I mean...tell me what to do and it'll be done. Urgency is not guaranteed, over."

"What? What do you mean it's not guaranteed, smart-alec? No other newspaper in the city will cover their reactions until tomorrow; we _have _to be the first. This could be the break that finally improves our profit!"

"You realize that newscasters are probably interviewing them right now, don't you?"

"Of course I realize that! I'm not the editor for nothing. Televised news is overrated; real information is printed." He coughed. "_Anyways..._contact the writer that lives nearest to the park. Make sure he or she is armed with at minimum four questions that the three can each answer individually, and that he or she gets there using the fastest method of transportation possible. The Temporibus will not be upstaged by some popular, 'legitimate' newspaper. We are the most legitimate there is! One day, the city of Angel Grove will realize our genius – my genius – and no longer shall I have my head shoved in the toilet! No longer shall I be assaulted in empty classrooms! No longer shall I be taped to the locker roo-"

"Melvin! Please don't go off on a tangent, the sound is tinny enough as it is over the speaker," Lilly pleaded. "...But yes; one day, our measly little _biweekly high_ _school newspaper_ will someday achieve city-wide acclaim. It sure will." Her voice was now monotone.

"That's why I made you co-editor, Lilly. You share my vision. And, eheh, the _other_ matter I discussed with you after your induction ceremony...about possibility of _intimacy_..."

"Not in a million years, Glauss. It's an inappropriate time to be bringing that up right now, don't you think?" She didn't give him the chance to attempt to defend himself. "I'll get on that and do my best to meet your demands, _sir_. Over."

The static cut off, signaling the end of the transmission. Melvin huffed, and finally went through the doors. He looked down at the shrubbery. "The Temporibus will grow colossal. Even the citizens will beg to put it in syndication. ...We just need that whopper story. And I swear, this has to be it."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, the Power Rangers – three of whom were the chosen delegates and were to be the subjects of this supposed 'whopper' – were engaged in a tight group hug in the park, basked in the sunset. They were laughing and cheering – except for one.<p>

"Kim...are you crying?" asked Tommy when they broke apart, gripping her shoulders lightly and looking straight at her. She wiped a tear away with her thumb, but shook her head.

"Of course not! I'm so happy right now; unbelievably happy!" she replied, forcing a smile and a chuckle. Zack tilted his head slightly.

"Aw, Kim, you can't fool us like that. Especially when tears are running down your face," he said, laughing and pulling her into another hug.

"I'm gonna miss you guys so much," she choked out, burying her face into his chest. "Do you guys know when you're gonna be back?"

Jason ran a hand through his hair. "We don't know anything; all we know is that we're going, and you guys told us that."

"Oh...right." Kim bit her lip.

"We'll call and write whenever we have the time," Trini said gently, rubbing Kim's arm and smiling tentatively at Billy and Tommy. "Of course, you did say that we have a packed agenda..."

"It'd be most improbable and unfair if the facilitators didn't allow you any allotment for leisure and contact with your relations," Billy added, shoving his hands into his pockets and folding into himself a tad. "There's nothing to worry about in regards to that.

Trini smiled even wider at him. "He's right; of course there'll be free time."

"I'd like to think that's an important part of keeping the peace," Zack joked, earning a hearty laugh from everyone. He finally released Kimberly, who launched herself at Trini.

"But...you guys won't be _here_. You'll be missing in class and at the Juice Bar and in the _Rangers_! What are we even going to about that?" She took a moment to think over what she said. "Ugh, I don't even care about Ranger duties right now, I just care about you. I mean...who's gonna spot me on the beam?"

"Tommy? Billy?" Jason questioned. Billy looked uncomfortable, and Tommy just shook his head. They laughed again, save for Kimberly.

"Gee, thanks; that makes me feel _so_ much better."

Trini stroked her hair. "What about Aisha? She seems nice enough, and attentive."

"Nah, she and the guys are going back to Stone Canyon the day after tomorrow. At least that's what they said the last time I talked to them; I haven't seen them in a couple of days."

"I asked Adam and Rocky to train with me a couple times, but they never came to the Youth Center. I thought everyone hung out there." said Tommy, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Even after what Zedd put them through? I wouldn't blame them if they're already back in Stone Canyon," said Zack, shrugging.

"I don't know...they've stuck around to help us this long – and they've really helped us..." Jason mused, rubbing his chin. Kim separated herself from Trini, and attempted to compose herself.

"They're nice, but they're leaving, and that's that. And you are too, so we have to make the most of our time left - what little we have. The news guy said you were leaving on Wednesday..." She huffed, and looked down at the grass. She tapped her foot impatiently, and rose her head after a minute. "We'll think of something."

Tommy reached forward and squeezed her shoulder. "We will. But it's getting late. I've got a ka-"

"A karate tournament tomorrow?" Jason finished for him, smirking.

"Hah; you're funny, man. But you're right." Tommy lightly punched his arm, and the group laughed yet again.

Trini nodded. "Tommy has a point, though. I should start packing. Or at least figure out what I'm going to pack."

"Me too...once my mom stops hugging me to death," said Zack, shuddering. No one laughed this time, because they all knew it was true.

"Alright guys, we'll see you later," said Jason. He led Zack and Trini down the path with their bikes, while Tommy, Billy, and Kim went the other way. Suddenly, Kim stopped, grinning.

"I've got it! We'll have a major party! Pull out all the stops, invite everyone! Oh, it'll be awesome; the best way to send them off!"

"Stupendous!" Billy agreed readily, smiling almost as wide as her. "Perhaps it would be an appropriate occasion to test my renovations to the Cake-O-Matic."

Tommy raised an eyebrow. "Cake-O-Matic? Sounds like a heck of a machine."

"Oh, no," said Kim, shaking her head and giggling, "Billy, I love you, but that machine isn't coming anywhere near the party." She turned back to Tommy. "He made it for Zack's birthday so we wouldn't have to pay for a cake from the deli. Unfortunately, it just turned out mush and made a _huge_ mess. A tasty mess, but a mess."

Tommy laughed. "Oh, but that sounds like fun! There won't be mush at the peace conference; this could be their only chance to have any!"

"While that is not the intended function of my invention, it could make for a boisterous experience." Billy smiled sheepishly. "However, per Kim's request, I wouldn't want it to cause a ruckus, so I'll exercise caution and keep it in my workshop until I work through its flaws. And I would much rather escape her wrath than be at the brunt of it."

She had a vacant look on her face for a moment – still not very good at comprehending Billyspeak – but nodded sharply all the same. "You've got that right." After one more shared laugh, they settled into comfortable silence as they made their way home.

They left just in time to miss someone roll haphazardly down the steepest hill in the park, not too far from where the group was standing. Once she finally was safe on the ground – covered in grass and mud – her cheap bike rolled down and landed right on top of her, causing her to emit a yelp.

"The things I do for my craft!" she yelled, and slumped on the grass.

* * *

><p>Lord Zedd had to face it – he was failing miserably in his attempts to destroy the Power Rangers.<p>

He had been pacing for hours in his throne room, trying desperately to come up with an idea for a monster so powerful, so frightening, and so malicious that those children wouldn't stand a chance. The only thing that came to his mind was a living dandelion whose seeds had the ability to put humans to sleep. _Oi._

"Why can't I come up with a way to **annihilate** those juvenile delinquents?" he yelled, stomping back over to his throne. He slammed the bottom of his staff down on the floor, causing the palace to shake and thunder to reverberate through the corridors.

"Baboo, it's the big one!" Squatt shouted desperately, clinging to his companion's waist. While they were well-kept within their little safe-room, they could never be too sure of what their new master could do to them. "Maybe we shoulda left with Empress Rita! There aren't any earthquakes in space!"

Baboo lightly slapped his partner's hands in an attempt to get him to unlatch his arms. He didn't. "Squatt, be rational! There's nothing in space, except singing with our empress. And you know how she gets when she wants to sing solo!"

"You two in there! Stop your incessant yapping!" He pounded his staff once again, causing the place to shake even more. Now Baboo found himself squeezing Squatt.

"I take it back! I would take singing about slime on the wall over becoming slime on the wall any day!" They backed into the corner and shrunk down to the floor, promptly hushing up.

"My liege!" shouted Goldar, rushing in.

"Oh, what do _you _want now, you overgrown ape? I'm in no mood for any of your fail-prone ideas!" Zedd barked, sending him a look that, even covered by the visor, dared him to take one more step toward the throne.

"But master, the Power Rangers are dissolving!" Goldar was careful not to say anymore than that for now; Zedd hadn't been this angry in a while, and even an expert brown-noser like him had to be careful about what he said in this situation.

Zedd paused. "Dissolving?"

"The Black, Yellow, and Red Rangers have been called to Switzerland, with no date of return!"

Squatt and Baboo teleported into the room. "Switzerland? Ooh, I hear they make the best chocolate!" Squatt bellowed, clapping his hands together.

Zedd leaped off his throne and marched up to the balcony. "So that's all it takes to get rid of three Power Rangers!"

"I could destroy the rest with my eyes closed!" proclaimed Goldar, seemingly forgetting his place.

"Don't even think about it, Goldar," Zedd hissed, "As soon as my newest demon of destruction is fully energized, I will destroy the Power Rangers myself!"

"New demon? But I thought you were having trouble with coming up with a new monster, Lord Zedd!" said Baboo, sounding confused. Zedd spun towards them menacingly.

"You know nothing about me, bafoons!" He slashed his metal claws at the air, causing the two to cower away. "Serpentera is my war machine; my very own zord, capable of annihilating whole planets! But its power source runs out far too quickly, preventing me from even crushing the gravel of any planet. But now..." He turned back to Goldar. "Goldar, see if you can't find a viable power source anywhere in this place. If you have to, get that worthless white creature to whip up something! I need more energy!"

"Anything you wish, O' Illustrious One." He marched down the long hallway, and entered Finster's workshop – a place he hadn't been to since Rita was tossed out into space. Speaking of whom...

"Finster, what is _that_?" he demanded, pointing his sword to the very familiar staff resting by his clock.

"It's simply a replica of Empress Rita's wand, Goldar," he answered, going over to it and polishing it with a rag he fished out of his pocket. "I created it for Zedd when he chose the Pink Ranger to be his bride, remember?"

"Never mind that; _why _is it still lying around? No trace of Rita Repulsa shall be found in my master's palace!"

"I assure you, it's just a powerless copy. Can't I keep it as a momento?"

"A momento? What would you need to remember that powerless hag for?" He grabbed the wand and shoved it at Finster. "_Dispose of it._ And when you're finished, make a potion that will expand the power capacity of our master's newest monster; be quick about it!" Just as soon as he came, he left.

"A potion to enhance a _machine_? I suppose I'll have to try; if I make something that works, maybe Zedd will use my monsters for a change." With a sigh, he shuffled through the palace until he reached Rita's old lookout point. Ever since the base of operations had moved to Zedd's throne room, this room had been eerily quiet. He looked out into the vast expanse of space, feeling empty. He had been lying to when he said it was powerless. When the Pink Ranger had been taken to fill Rita's old role, he had hoped that she would treat the minions with at least a little more respect than Zedd, and give Finster a job again. They were far-fetched hopes, seeing as Zedd's magic worked simply _so well_ on his monsters, but it was something for him to hold on to. Now all he had was the even more recondite belief that Rita would return and take back her crown. It was almost laughable.

"Oh, Empress...I only hope this wand will reach you somehow, and you'll find some use for it." With that, he gently tossed the wand over the balcony, and watched as it began to slowly drift out of view.


	2. Episode Two

_**2. Grin and Bear It**_

Many things could happen in a short amount of time, as the Power Rangers could attest. In less than twenty-four hours, they had gone from fretting over their friendship and what they would pack to worrying about the destruction that Zedd's new _planet-sized _zord would cause (thank god its power source was so faulty). Not only that, but Jason, Zack, and Trini weren't even Power Rangers anymore! Well, as far as the other Rangers knew – it wasn't clear just how the Sword of Light transferred the powers over to the new three. Speaking of whom, the new guys were Rocky, Adam, and Aisha! They were now permanently residing in Angel Grove...somehow...going to school at AGHS, hanging out at the Juice Bar frequently, teaching classes there, acting like upstanding model citizens; all the requirements of Rangerdom. It looked like the team would still be as effective at defending the city as they always had been.

As such, there was the possibility that the original incarnation could be forgotten. It was laughable, even silly; how could soldiers ever forget their battles together? Still...teenagers were fickle, and as their lives moved on, ties to the past were often severed. Could the team be an exception? They'd see in due time.

Jason, Trini, and Zack found that being relieved of their duties gave them more breathing room (at least a bit, seeing as they were already busy enough _before_ Rita came along), and that made preparing for Switzerland less stressful; not to mention having to wrap up all the classes they taught. Of course, it also allowed them time for, er, _other_ extra-curricular activities, such as spending Monday afternoon - two days after the announcement - with the staff of The Temporibus – Angel Grove High's newspaper. Now, it would be an understatement to say that the three had survived a lot together, but this time, they felt rather unnerved.

People buzzed all around them – furiously typing, discussing different components of the current issue in production, examining photographs, and perhaps the most noticeable, talking and yelling at each other about things that had nothing to do with the paper. They couldn't allow themselves be distracted, though. After all, they had a _photoshoot _to participate in.

"Aw, you guys," whined the wimpy, raven-haired girl taking pictures of them. "You're being _totally _bland. Is it the lighting. Oh yeah; let's move you over by the window." She gripped Trini's shoulder and practically shoved them all over to the opposite corner of the room while they exchanged weary glances. Once she decided they were situate, they each forced a smile. "Yes, there it is! Alright, work it! You _are_ peace! Embrace the camera like it was your long-lost brother! _Work it ou-_"

"For God's sake, Tibby, this is a news photo!" interjected a tall, serious-looking blond girl. She side stepped in front of Tibby and smiled. "Hi, I'm Lilly Landau, staff writer and co-editor. I am _so_ sorry; if I would've known she was going to do...um, this...for the cover photo, I'd take it myself." She took the camera. "Alright, try to smile, and three...two...one..."

"And there you go! Sorry about that – again." She gave them a charming smile, shoving the camera back to Tibby with a disdainful glance.

"Eh, don't sweat it," said Zack, waving her off. "It was the last time we could stand around and do nothing for awhile."

"Seriously," said Jason, "Touring for the peace conference will keep us _busy_."

"Oh, well, don't tell me that; tell your interviewer...whenever she gets here." Lilly bowed to them, sent them one last smile, and went over to the teacher's desk on the other side of the room. There sat Melvin, scribbling furiously on a piece of graph paper. Lilly ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Did she call you and say she was gonna be late?"

"Why on _earth_ would she call me? I know she's – heh – afraid of me and all," he said, wrinkling his nose.

_Afraid? Maybe of catching whatever bug you have that's screwing up your respiratory system so bad, _she thought, smirking. "Well, she wouldn't call me. The girl's been here two months and she's barely talked to anyone except you and me – and like you said, she's 'afraid' of you, and she doesn't like me, so..." She shrugged. "You know what, if she doesn't show up soon, I'll improv. I'll only ask a few questions, but I feel bad for making those guys wait so long."

"If she doesn't show up, I'll kick her off the paper!" He pounded his fist on the desk, only to quickly recoil it and massage it with his other hand. "She screwed up on the day of the announcement, and I've had to wait two more days for her to get her act together! I wanted the report on Saturday! It's disorderly and noisy enough around here without one more miscreant anyway."

Lilly pursed her lips, and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'll give her a couple more minutes."

In the mean time, the three leaned against the wall, looking slightly bored. "At first I felt like a model...but then she just kept on flashing. I thought I was going to go blind," said Trini, rubbing her eyes for emphasis.

"I've heard stories about what goes on with the paper _behind the scenes_," said Zack, making a wave motion with his arm. "I thought they were too ridiculous to be true. Well, they're ridiculous, but they're true."

"You know something? They move kinda like Putties," said Jason, getting a laugh out of everyone. "but trying to create a newspaper every two weeks would make things crazy."

"I agree. And creating such a good one, too! They touch on a lot of important issues, and take really good pictures." Trini's face fell a bit. "Barely anyone picks up a copy, though. I hope that changes."

"Well, ya gotta admire them for keeping it going even when no one reads _and_ staffing is tough." Zack sighed. "I wish we could give that interview soon. We gotta get down to the Youth Center for the class award ceremonies. What are you doing for yours, Jase?"

"I figured I'd give em all their next belt promotion. Nothing special, just people will be watching, and maybe there'll be some music. You?"

"Check it." He put his backpack on his lap, and took out a handful of shiny pentagonal badges. "I got these from the party store yesterday. The kids are gonna love em. I made 'em cassettes of the music we trained to also."

At that moment, Lilly pulled up a chair and sat in front of them. "So, it looks like your girl isn't showing up, so I'll be conducting the interview. I'll make it short and sweet." She took a recorder out of the pocket of her cardigan, and began to tape the q&a. "So, this is the obvious question: how do you feel about being selected?"

Jason leaned forward. "It's an honor. I mean, there are so many kids who do even more than we do to better the world, but we do our best. And now we'll get to – hopefully – solve the same issues that we confront here on a world-level." He shrugged.

"Yeah, Jase pretty much spoke for me on that," said Zack, chuckling.

"Me too. It's an amazing opportunity, and I'm eternally grateful for getting to take it," Trini added, nodding.

"What's going to be like being away from home for so long?"

Trini started this time. "It'll be a growing experience. We all will miss Angel Grove – our family and friends especially – but another part of the summit is, er, coming of age. Becoming adults so we can discuss and resolve topics maturely."

Lilly put her hand to her heart. "Mmm, like poetry. That'll move our readers for sure." She combed some a chunk of hair behind her ear. "Hrm...it's a well-known fact that you're a best-friend-sextet with Billy Cranston, Kimberly Hart, and Tommy Oliver. How are they taking your departure? Would you feel the same if they were going in your place?"

Zack chuckled. "They're _really_ excited for us. They told us the news, actually. Kimberly almost knocked me over with her hug. I know they're gonna miss us, and we will too – more than they'll ever know – but we'll be in contact as much as we can. It's not like we'll be gone forever, and the reason we're leaving is for a good cause. It'd be the same if it were them." Zack was suddenly reminded of when Tommy lost his powers. Having them stripped for a second time...well, it _wouldn't _be the same, he guessed. He didn't even wanna think about how Tommy would take it.

Lilly coughing lightly brought him back to reality. "Just one more question. What do you each hope to achieve during the conference?"

"Personally, I'm most interested in environmental conservation," said Trini. "We've done a lot for the city in regards to that – tore down the waste dump, saved an important statue in the park from being torn down, and planted trees and gardens." She beamed. "The earth can really be helped by beautification. And it promotes peace and goodwill."

"I really wanna talk about poverty," said Zack, wringing his hands together. "It's probably the most glaring issue in the world today. I mean, here we are in swanked-out America, while Africa, Indonesia, South America, and others are still underdeveloped, their people hungry and uneducated...it's just something that really needs to be resolved." He nodded to Jason.

"To be honest, I don't really have a 'set' goal; I'm just gonna do my best to solve whatever issues that need to be solved," he said, offering a smile. Lilly nodded solemnly.

"Inspiring words from inspiring teens." She turned off the tape, and stood up. "Alright, you're free to go. Thank you again for waiting, and good luck. You guys are really gonna put Angel Grove on the map." She took a moment to consider something. "Hey, whenever you guys have the time, would you be open to phone interviews? They'll only be a couple minutes I know; I know our readers would really be interested to know what's going on with you."

"You betcha. We can do that, right guys?" said Jason, followed by an eager nod and smile from Zack and Trini. They got up and shook her hand one by one, then filed out. She stretched, and sauntered over to Tibby, who was fooling around with her camera.

"We're going to have to work on your photo-taking skills," she said, patting her shoulder. "It's a shame they have to go, though; those guys are hunks."

"You can always get a little action in at the party tonight, can't you?" Tibby rubbed her chin and gave her a suggestive look. Lilly grinned crookedly.

"I dunno, they don't seem like the type...but maybe, if they're up to it." She smoothed out the creases in her white halter top and huffed. "I'll come to the party later; I'm gonna see if I can at least type up the beginnings of this story."

The door to the classroom flew open, and a chubby girl with short brown hair sped in, her freckled face twisted in shock. "I'm here! It's okay! No one panic!" she declared, slamming the door closed. She leaned over and heaved, putting one hand on her knee and using the back of the other to wipe the sweat from her forehead. Lilly's nostrils flared as she marched over to her.

"Dammit Schuyler! You were supposed to be here an hour ago!" she barked, putting her hands on her hips.

"I know..._I know_," Schuyler rasped, breathless. She started to straighten up. "That goddamn park, man, it's out to end me. I mean...last night, I took that bad tumble down the hill – you should see my bruises, they're just gruesome – and _today_...woo, I feel like I was flattened by an elephant's ass." She laughed pathetically. "So, I was riding my bike d-down another hill, because hills are the quickest way to get to school, right? Well that wasn't smart, 'cause you know how I didn't come to school today since I was all woozy and stuff? Yeah, biking was not good for my stuff. And then...okay, this is gonna sound stupid – stupider than Skullovitch – but I was going down this hill, and...I thought a tree was a person. Okay, not exactly, but it was very person-like, so I held out my arm to high-five it in an uncharacteristic show of being social. And then the branch caught me, so I fell off. I was rolling around and in pain and stuff, and then my bike rolled down, and then I had to go after it, and I was already out of it but I had to get here. So I went, and then these freaking demon children thought it would be funny if they tore up clumps of grass and threw them in my direction, so then I-"

"Schuyler! Jeez, do you breathe?" Lilly finally interrupted. She scoffed. "I really don't care about what you say you went through. It still made you late enough to miss the interview; I had to conduct it myself."

Schuyler deflated. "...I missed it? Really?"

Lilly gave her a deadpan glare. "No, April Fool's."

"...But it's February."

"God...I would not joke around about your _job_. Look, it's not your fault that you missed them on Saturday – that was just Melvin being an unfair douchebag – but you knew that you had to be here. Ten or twenty minutes late after what happened is acceptable; an hour is unbelievable."

Schuyler wiped some of the dirt off her nose, and sighed in defeat. "Well, if you'd have been there and saw my struggle, you'd understand." She glared and wiped her nose on the sleeve of her over-sized jean jacket. "Look, I'm sorry. I really wanted to do the interview – a cover story! It sucks being stuck as a junior writer, y'know. I'm not even a junior!"

"Melvin wants to kick you out for this." Lilly ran a hand through her hair and bit her lip. "Look...maybe you can get in a question or two at the party, and write a little exposition on it. Make it a compilation story." She expected Schuyler to fall on her knees in gratitude; all she got was a grimace.

"...A p-party? Um, what party?"

She rolled her eyes. "The big party at the Youth Center tonight, for Jason, Zack, and Trini. You should've found the invitation in your locker. Everyone got invitations."

"Oh...that one." Schuyler grew uncomfortable. "I threw it away. I'm not one for parties."

"Well, you're not gonna be one for writing for the paper if you don't go. I'm trying to help you, the least you can do is give an inch back."

She pursed her lips. "Fine, I'll go. Thank you for your generosity." She threw her arms up and scurried out the door before Lilly could say anything else. She smacked her lips together.

"She's going to mess this up; I can tell." With another eye roll, she sat down at the nearest computer and began to type.

* * *

><p>The bash was in full swing well into the evening. Despite it being a Monday night, an estimated ninety-five percent of the student body was in attendance. It was astonishing that the building didn't burst from it being so packed; hardly anyone could maneuver from the make-shift buffet table to the dance floor, and those who had chosen their place by the bar were stuck there for what looked the duration of the party. However, it wasn't of any inconvenience to anyone; the music was great, the food was tasty, and the atmosphere was jovial and celebratory; everyone was having a great time.<p>

"You guys..." Zack began, he and four of the the original Rangers seated at the table closest to the bar. "I know I must have said this a million times tonight, but...this is really great. Or in the words of my man Billy over there-" he pointed to the dance floor, where the boy in question was dancing awkwardly with a red-haired girl, "-prodigious!"

"Well, you guys deserved a good send off," said Tommy, grinning as he pounded his fist with Zack's.

"I'm sorry that I had to lie about changing the date of the award ceremonies to get you guys to come, but we wanted it to be a surprise!" said Kimberly, clasping her hands together.

"Oh Kim, you and surprise parties..." said Trini, shaking her head and smiling knowingly.

"At least it wasn't as bad as the time you 'forgot' Zack's birthday," said Jason, chuckling. Zack pinched the bridge of his nose and feigned a look of pain.

"Ugh, don't remind me. That Nasty Knight _still _haunts me."

Trini pursed her lips, and put her her head in her hands. "This isn't the end, is it?" The mood of the table instantly fell.

Jason put his arm around her shoulders. "Of course not. End of our run as Rangers, sure, but not of us."

Kimberly took her hand. "Trini, all of us will always be best friends; the tightest group of best friends there ever was. You could never be replaced; not you, Zack, or Jason."

Trini forced a small smile. "I know that, but I didn't think not being a Ranger anymore could make me feel so...I don't know, unfulfilled."

Zack grimaced, looking down at his bare wrist. "...I kinda feel the same way."

"Guys, I know how you feel," said Tommy, looking at them sympathetically. "It's the worst having your powers stripped from you, but none of us are going to be Rangers forever. Think of it like this: you guys get more time to lead normal lives.

"I hate to break it to you, Tommy," said Jason, "but our lives will never be normal."

"I guess you're right." Tommy shrugged, and grinned. Kimberly latched onto his arm.

"There's a break in the crowd on the dance floor. Come ooon," she urged, getting up and pulling him.

"Well...looks like I'm out for the night." He said warily, letting himself be tugged away.

"Just us three already, huh?" Jason joked, exchanging knowing looks with the others.

"Hey guys!" Rocky called, pushing his way through the group, Aisha and Adam not far behind. "Awesome, a place to sit!"

"Looks like you spoke too soon, Jase," said Zack, snickering as the newcomers sat down. "What's up, guys?"

"It's packed in here! You guys sure have a lot of fans," Aisha exclaimed, her countenance brighter than a light bulb.

Trini considered what she said. "Um, I guess you could say that. Or maybe everyone just jumps at the chance to party."

"Things aren't nearly this exciting in Stone Canyon," said Adam, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's both cool and, uh, unfamiliar."

"Well, people there don't have their safety at risk all the time; anything fun is a good distraction," said Zack, wiggling his eyebrows. "So, how's being Rangers going?"

"Oh, you guys, it's awesome," Rocky gushed, his eyes glazing over. "We can jump _so_ high now, and our weapons are just...damn. And my _zord_! God, my zord is the freaking best! You shoulda seen him yesterday against that bull...bug...thing. Man..."

Everyone gave him blank stares. "...What he's trying to say is that it's a great gig," said Aisha, patting Rocky's shoulder.

"At least I know you'll take good care of the Red Dragonzord," said Jason, greatly amused.

"You guys don't have to worry about a thing. We'll be doing our job if we're half as good as you guys were," said Adam, looking a little shy. Aisha gave him a little squeeze.

Zack beamed. "Hey, man, thanks; that means a lot." He clasped his hand and shook it. "I'm honored to pass on my powers to you." Adam grew even more bashful.

"We're all honored, really," said Trini. "You guys are such good people; Angel Grove couldn't be in better hands." Rocky turned up his chin slightly, Aisha just smiled, and Adam looked a little chagrined.

"So," said Aisha, her voice regaining that eager tone, "You guys finished packing yet?"

Zack scoffed. "I wish, but my mom is insisting that I put in all my-"

The sound of a loud _BONK _cut him off mid-sentence, and the six of them looked across the room in the direction of the noise. Schuyler hovered around the pole next to the stairs, rubbing her forehead and looking groggy.

"She must've...hit her head," Zack said disbelievingly, raising an eyebrow. "That's gotta hurt."

Trini rose from seat quickly. "I'll get her some ice."

That proved to be unnecessary. Not a moment later, Schuyler looked over to the table, and her expression went from strain to looking like a deer caught in headlights. She stood there for a minute, unnerving everyone, until she sped right past them and out the exit.

"What was...what even..." Rocky mumbled, putting the confusion everyone felt into words. It only heightened when the DJ began to spin a hip-hop beat, and Bulk and Skull charged onto the dance floor and tried to break-dance. They all found themselves speechless; not even a laugh.

"Well...stuff like this kinda happens everyday here," said Jason. He rose his glass of coke in a toast. "So, since I didn't tell you before, welcome to Angel Grove. And good luck."

* * *

><p>Please R&amp;R, folks!<p> 


	3. Episode Three

_**3. Fruit-Caked**_

The going-away party was truly 'happening' – at least as far as Schuyler thought as she arrived well into it. It could be a dud for all she knew – parties were foreign to her. What was certain was that she felt suffocated by all these hyper, loud teenagers – she had to get in, do the interview, and get out ASAP. But how was she supposed to secure ten minutes alone with the guests of honor?

"I'm not gonna think about it...not gonna," she chanted to herself as she hovered by the entrance. She stared at the people convulsing on the dance floor and sighed. "Teenagers." She hugged her clipboard to her chest and began walking toward the bar, taking the opportunity to recite the script she had written for tonight. "Heeeey guys! I'm Schuyler Reeves, junior reporter for the AGHS Temporibus. I know Miss Landau already conducted an interview of her own, but I...but I...aw, dammit." She sat and slumped on the the last available stool, setting her clipboard down in front of her. However, as she tried to memorize once again, she was stopped short by the events of earlier in the evening replaying in her mind.

_Schuyler sat at the side of the long dinner table in her dining room. Her step-mother, Tyla, and her father, Charlie, sat at the heads. Across from Schuyler was her five-year-old half brother, Georgie, who was stuffing his already puffy cheeks before anyone else had taken a bite of their plates. That was mostly due to Charlie being busy telling Tyla about his workday, and Schuyler being preoccupied with chopping up her salad with a butter knife._

"_So, Sky," Tyla said, sliding her utensils closer to her plate and smiling all-too wide. "I take it your job hunt isn't going too well, sweetie."_

_She stopped her chopping but didn't bother looking up. "Nope."_

"_Oh, that's alright. I've solved your problem for you!" She giggled. Charlie didn't comment, but he looked embarrassed. "I took Georgie down to the Juice Bar – you know, in that cute little Youth Center – today for a smoothie, and I had a nice little chat with the owner. He's looking for an extra set of hands to help him out." She wiggled her eyebrows._

"_Isn't the Youth Center supposed to be for, you know, youths?"_

"_Exactly!" Her sudden burst of excitement startled everyone – even Georgie took pause before going right back to inhaling his food. "Who better to work there than you?"_

_Schuyler gaped. "...You're kidding, right?"_

"_Look," said Charlie, putting his atop hers. "We just want you to check it out. And hopefully take it."_

_All sorts of witty retorts rose up in her throat – mostly about how Tyla didn't even have a job and got to sit on her toned butt all day, but that would only put her on ice with them. That, and visions of an orange '72 Gran Torino Sport – one that could only be bought with money she earned – danced in her head. "Sure, whatever."_

"_Maybe you could ask about it at the party tonight," Tyla suggested. Schuyler was about to ask how even she knew about the party but she held her tongue once more. "Eat your carrots, dear."_

"'Eat your carrots, **dear**'," Schuyler mocked, making faces and bopping her head around. "'Eat your lettuce, **honey**. Eat your peas, _**sweet pea**_.' Haha, Tyla, you are so funny..."

"...Uh," said the person who had suddenly manifested in front of her, "is all _that_ what you want in your smoothie?" She looked up to see a hefty man dressed a tropical-print shirt and apron (his fluffy hair also being of note) standing behind the bar, looking at her with puzzlement. She flushed a little.

"Sorry. I got a little lost in my...yeah." She sighed. "Are you Ernie?"

"Last time I checked." He chuckled. "Still want that smoothie?"

"Oh, um, maybe later. Are you hiring?"

"I certainly am, if you're not gonna just stand around looking 'pretty' like my last kid did."

"Well, I couldn't do that even if I tried, so I guess I'm qualified – even though I can't make any kind of food or drink worth my life." She chuckled, surprised at how readily she warmed up to working for this man.

"Eh, it's not hard once you've gotten the hang of it. And you'll be waitressing and busing, so it won't be all food."

"...Yay." The eagerness was already starting to go away at the thought of forced interaction with the rest of these kids.

"Well great. You can start the day after tomorrow after school. And your name is...?"

"Right. Duh." She slapped her forehead. "Schuyler Reeves."

"Oh, that was your mom in here today. Nice lady. Very, uh...enthusiastic. Practically convinced me to start hiring."

"Yeah." _That's an understatement._

"Well, I won't keep you from the party any longer. See you on Wednesday, Schuyler." He saluted her, then went in the back room.

"No; please keep me." She bit her lip, and went back to attempting to memorize. Just as she finally fixed her attention on it, a loud fanfare came from the TV on the other side of the bar. _Wonderful; the news. At a party._

"This just in. We've just gotten word that once again the amazing Power Rangers have saved our fair city and the world from one of Lord Zedd's lethal monsters. Eyewitnesses report that after a lengthy battle..."

"Eyewitnesses...hah; no regular person could get that close without being brutally injured beyond the point of recounting information. And that's recycled footage from two days ago! What's the station pulling?" she blurted, rolling her eyes. The two skimpily-dressed girls seated next to her giggled in unison.

"Who cares? It's still about the Rangers," said the red-head, sighing dreamily.

"Yeah, they're dreamboats," said the brunette, twirling some hair around her finger. "The guys, I mean."

Schuyler tried to hold in her laughter, but she just couldn't help herself. "Uh, I'm sorry; you're referring to the _Power_ Rangers, right?"

"Well duh. What of it?" the red-head hissed, attempting to look menacing.

"Oh, shit, I'm so intimidated right now." Schuyler held up her hands and feigned an expression of fright. "The Power Rangers are nothing but corporate fruit cakes. And the aliens aren't much better, though at least they do some damage."

The girls gasped – in unison yet again. "Ohmigod; are you siding with the things that, like, wanna kill us?"

"No! Well, not really. Have you ever seen those guys on TV in their flashy spandex and tacky bike helmets? They're so cheesy! Some middle-aged government employee has to be writing their catch-phrases for them; even kids don't talk like that. That, or someone pulled them out of a newspaper comic from the thirties. They preach good will and giving back and all that crap. What ever happened to beating bad guys to a pulp for vengeance and justice and the sake of breaking faces?" By the time she finished, the girls were long-gone. She took a sip of one of the smoothies they left behind. "Freakin' Power Rangers...eugh, kiwi and pineapple? Guess these are made to order; gee, won't my job be fun."

She turned her attention back to the crowd, only to see Melvin come and sit on the vacated stool right next to her. "I couldn't help but overhear you bashing our saviors, _Schuyler_." He wheezed. "I guess you can't help your opinion; being fresh meat and all."

"Dude, I moved here like two months ago. I think that's good time to watch enough news and form a valid opinion. And you _know_ how much I'm into comic books. If there's anyone whose word should be considered law on your 'saviors', it's me. I mean, Superman is more legitimate than these guys, and I hate Mr. Oh-Look-At-Me-I'm-So-Perfect-And-Indestructible-Here-Let-Me-Blind-You-With-My-Laser-Eyes-And-My-Bright-Costume with a burning passion."

"Oh please. Superhero comics are overrated. Description is far more stimulating than pictures. Say, while I have you here, what exactly do you plan to do about your performance on the paper?"

"Screw stimulation. Ever thought a lack of _color _in your life is the reason you're such a stickler, Melvy?" She had to stop and contemplate his question. "Well...I'm trying my best to get credible infor-"

"Not good enough!" He pounded his fist on the bar and – surprisingly – didn't recoil. "The only things you didn't mess up were your start-up jobs: weather and cafeteria trends. Because there is no possible way a human being with a functioning brain could mess those up. Why I promoted you, I'll never know." He took a moment to seethe – only to to straighten back up and glare at her. "_Don't call me Melvy_."

Schuyler ran a hand through her hair; she was fighting a losing battle. "Well, y'know, it's a lot of pressure!" She nearly facepalmed. "With you always breathing down everyone's' necks, how does anyone get anything done?"

"In case you haven't noticed, dear Schuyler, _we do_."

"Oh, and who reads the paper again?"

He was silent for only a moment. "That's not the point!" He pressed his lips into a firm line, contemplating something of his down. "Or perhaps it is. Alright, you think you have the Midas touch? I'll let you write one more story; any topic of your choosing. If it boosts readers and popularity, I'll keep you on the paper – even promote you. If it doesn't – which is the most likely outcome – you're fired. Deal?"

_I'm so fired._ "Deal." She extended her hand for a shake, but upon realizing that he hadn't extended his (and that she was about to shake a hand that could have been anywhere), she put it back at her side and puffed out her cheeks "So, um, should I still do the companion piece for Lilly?"

He threw his head back and cackled. "I don't care what you do at this point! You're practically off the paper already!" At the sight of Billy Cranston walking up the stairs, he froze. He slid off his seat and galloped over to him. "Oh William? Valued colleague? Hold your horses!"

Billy resisted the urge to cringe. "Er, hello Melvin. I don't mean to come off as offensive, but can't whatever you wish to speak to me about wait until tomorrow? You should be enjoying yourself."

"I am; this'll only take a minute." He put his arm around Billy's shoulders, and began strolling with him toward the exit. "Have you begun working on your science fair entry yet?"

"I've drawn up some preliminary concepts, but nothing more." Billy looked pained, but he doubted Melvin would notice. "Yourself?"

"Oh, pretty much the same. Just some _blueprints._" He puffed out his chest. "Think you'll beat me again this year, old bean?" There was a threatening edge to his voice.

"I think it's far too early to make any assumptions about the outcome, especially when the other entrants haven't been announced." An uncomfortable chuckle escaped his lips. "Well, I'm afraid I've reached my destination; this table here. With all my friends. I'll see you in school!"

Melvin bowed his head to him and made his way back into the crowd. He smiled wickedly. "That you will, _Cranston_. I'll finally beat you this year; I know it."

"Yes, I think I finally have it down!" Schuyler declared, waving her clipboard around frantically. She turned around and hopped off the stool – only for her eagerness to disappear completely at seeing the cluster of kids again. "Do I really wanna have to deal with this every day? ...Do I actually wanna do something my parents want me to do for my future?" She stood there and pondered. "Ugh, think about the car, think about the car...eh, I've got other things to worry about right now. Ahem. Heeey, guy – wait, that sounds desperate. Hello, then. I'm Schuyler Reeves, junior reporter for the...oh gosh, why call myself a 'junior'. It _is_ my job title, but that just sounds sad. Who knows how much longer I'll be keeping it, anyways. So, _reporter_ for the AGHS Temporibus. I know Miss Landau – ew no, I'm not calling her that. I know Barbie already conducted the...no, I think I wrote 'did'...crap, this is the part I always forget."

As she looked once again at her sheet, she grew so frustrated on the words that her peripheral vision blurred. Which was why she walked head-first into a pole. The sting of embarrassment bothered her more than the bump, so she did the most logical thing that her now-foggy brain could concoct: she ran for the exit, interview be damned.

Lilly, who was dancing with Jason by the doorway, grabbed the runaway reporter by the arm and grit her teeth. "Reeves, what are you doing?"

"Uh, I have to go...powder my lawn." Her face was expressionless.

"And by doing _that_, what else are you doing?"

She deflated. "Missing the interview."

"Uh, everything alright?" asked Jason, looking a little concerned.

_Oh bless his heart, hot **and** sweet. Why does he have to leave?_, Lilly thought, huffing. She pursed her lips, then took hold of his shoulder.

"Just _fine_," she purred. "Say Sky, you know Jason, don't you? _One of the guys selected for the peace conference_?"

Schuyler froze, shifting her gaze back and forth between her clipboard and the boy. "Um, n-no." He was about to formally introduce himself, but she immediately launched into her 'interview'. "Hello, I am Schuyler Reeves, ju- I mean reporter for the AGHS Te-Temporibus. I know Barb- ffff Lilly already conducted an interview, but I would like to inquire more about your future experiences to quench the desire of every student in our school who want to gain the maximum amount of knowledge on this subject." She took a deep breath, but that didn't stop her from beginning to hyperventilate. Not a second later, she ran outside, leaving Jason perplexed and Lilly hiding her face in her hands.

"Did I miss something?" Jason tried to hide an amused smile.

"I am _so _sorry. She's the girl who was supposed to interview you this afternoon. She has...I don't even know what's wrong with her." After yet another lip purse, she groaned. "I'll be right back; don't go anywhere."

"Oh, I don't plan to." He smirked. She flashed him a sly grin, then marched out to the bike racks, where Schuyler hovered and tried to catch her breath.

"What the hell is your problem?" she barked, pulling at her hair. "I practically shove one of them at you for the goddamn interview and you _still_ can't do it!"

"In case you weren't listening when I started working for the paper, I have people issues. I don't do well in big situations. So just lay off, alright?"

"What are you doing as a journalist then? News flash: it's a job that requires you to _talk_ to people; mostly in public settings. And not only that, but do you ever take things seriously?"

Schuyler made faces at her as she awkwardly mounted her neon-yellow bike. "I happen to take my writing very seriously."

"BS. I know you don't take schoolwork seriously, because you missed class today and yet showed up perfectly healthy to the Temp – which meets _during_ the school day, if you'd forgotten. And you can't even take people who risk their lives to save ours every single day seriously! You know, you're better off as monster bait at this point."

"I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of my decrepit bike riding away!" In a stunning show of maturity, she did in fact pedal away, running over Lilly's foot in the process. "_I'm_ monster bait? Well you're monster **chum**! That's worse!"

As Lilly nursed her foot, she fumed as she hopped onto the tar. "Well at least I get to make out with someone tonight and you're just alone! ...Wow, that's pathetic." With a sigh, she shook out her foot and returned to the party.

* * *

><p>The pathetic failure of Serpentera put Lord Zedd into a bit of a rut. Destroying an entire planet simply was not enough when the Power Brats failed to be eliminated along with it. How much longer would he have to try and fail?<p>

"Finster!" he roared at the shaking creature in question, who was currently standing in front of the throne. "Where is Serpentera's battery enhancer? I requested it two days ago!"

"Well, m-my lord, it is impossible to create a potion that could power an electric object," he sputtered, "though I did try!"

"_Try_? If you tried, I would have **something**!" He pounded his staff on the floor. "Make a monster to power it if you have to! Oh, wait; _it would just fail_." He turned away from him and went to the balcony. "Get back to work, and do not rest until you make me **something** to power Serpentera!"

As he scurried back to his workshop, Zedd gently massaged his exposed brain. "Oi, what I have to put up with." He looked scornfully down on planet Earth. "Let's see how Angel Grove fairs as it sleeps soundly – for now." He turned on his visor-vision and surveyed the city. He grew bored with the lack of activity and was about to retire to bed, but an object that had washed up onto Angel Grove Lake caught his attention.

"Could it be..." he muttered as he scrutinized the object. He made out a very familiar-looking chest. "Yes! The Power Eggs!"

"The Power Eggs, my lord?" Goldar called as he shuffled into the room. "But the Rangers cast them into the sea when Rita tried to get her grubby hands on them!"

"Where do you think the chest washed up, Goldar? A pumpkin patch? I'm not wrong; I'd know that chest anywhere. And unlike that hag, I won't fail to obtain them." He laughed as he thought of the chaos he would unleash on Earth with them. "Come; we will retrieve them tomorrow."

"But master, if you have them in your sight now, why wait until to-"

"_You dare question my plan_?" Zedd roared, glowing red. Goldar cowered in fear and shook his head. "Now to bed!"

* * *

><p>Please R&amp;R, folks!<p> 


	4. Episode Four

_**4. Day of the Living Teddy**_

Things had been rather quiet on the invasion front for the past few days. Was there reason to be suspicious? Perhaps just a little, but the Rangers couldn't help but be grateful for the extra free-time. Still, they were putting it to good use by going to Billy's lab to begin training Rocky, Adam, and Aisha in the ways of the Ranger. Believe it or not, it was a lot more difficult – and Zordon had only summarized what it would entail.

"These are your communicators," said Billy, handing them out to the three. "I apologize for not getting these to you earlier; I had to make some minor adjustments to modify the wavelength capacity for optimum tra-"

"No offense, Billy, but I'm not understanding a word you're saying," said Rocky, examining the communicator curiously. Tommy and Kimberly shot a wary look at Billy.

He held out his wrist to demonstrate. "This button allows you to communicate with the rest of us, with our voices coming through the speakers in the middle. Zordon also uses these devices to contact us in the event of an attack. And this button next to it will teleport you to the command center, and then back to your place of departure."

"You sure are savvy, Billy," said Aisha, eagerly clasping it onto her wrist. "Ooo, and they're fashionable. It'll go with everything!"

"Ohmigod I know!" Kimberly exclaimed, jutting out her own wrist. "I spend less money on jewelry now."

"Uh...maybe it's time to talk about combat," said Tommy, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "So, you guys already had experience in the suits once. Sure is different fighting in them, huh?"

"Not really; it feels pretty much the same," said Adam, looking thoughtful as he searched for the right words to explain himself. "I didn't even feel it when I morphed. I guess it's like...a second skin, almost?"

"Most of the time. Then you kick a Putty and it manages to hold your foot and take your boot off," said Kimberly, crossing her arms and pressing her lips into a firm line.

"They pulled your boot off?" Rocky asked, showing signs of life and enthusiasm for the first time that afternoon.

"Yeah! I didn't even know it could happen. I got it back, obviously." She smirked. "But I got grass stains all over my sock."

"Honey, it's only a sock," said Aisha, patting Kim's shoulder.

"That's what Trini said." She sighed.

"Um..._anyways_," said Tommy, forcing a smile and rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, the suits are protective and fit for fighting – and they're easy to get on, which is a plus – but there's always a chance they could be damaged.

"If Rita and Zedd haven't done it already, there's no way they can get us," said Rocky, looking proud

"I like the attitude, Rocko, but you never know."

"Our suits are connected to the Power Coins; as long as they're stable and kept secure in fights, no major damage can come to the suits. Or our powers, of course," said Billy.

"Hey, speaking of fighting, can we talk about the weapons? Zordon didn't say anything about those – actually, he didn't say much about a lotta things." Rocky's expression went from excitement to puzzlement in a matter of seconds.

"Most certainly. Seeing as we can't obtain them without morphing, we can examine the blueprints I drew up."

Rocky and Aisha stared at him, dumbfounded. "How much free time do you have on your hands, Billy?" said Aisha.

"You'll get used to his genius soon," said Kimberly, as Billy pulled five scrolls off a shelf on the desk behind them. He unrolled the three of them and laid them out on the workbench they were surrounding.

"Rocky, your Power Sword is the key to enable all the other weapons when assembling the Power Blaster. On its own, it can be used in swordplay and can deliver an energy slash when swung underhanded."

"Awesoooome," Rocky sing-songed, pumping his fist.

"Aisha, your Power Daggers can also deliver an energy slash when cross together. They have precision strike as well, but more often than not, have only been used to assemble the Blaster."

"You kidding? I'll abuse them."

"And Adam, this is your Power Axe. Not only is it aerodynamically sound for a clean slice, but it can be used as a cannon if you slide the blade back. It's also what makes the Power Blaster, well, a blaster."

Adam said nothing; he just smiled and traced the outline of the blueprint with his index finger.

"Uh...dude?" said Rocky, waving his hand in front of his buddy's face. "It's just a drawing; not a girl."

Adam jolted out of his trance. "Oh sorry; I was just admiring it."

"Ugh, you are _so_ adorable," Kimberly cooed, squeezing his shoulders.

"The need to assemble the Power Blaster has yet to arise these days; usually Zedd grows his monster before we can do any lethal damage at ordinary size. However, we need to be prepared for every possibility. The weapons _are_ more powerful than regular combat – palpably so – but we shouldn't use them against monsters unless it is absolutely necessary."

Rocky tapped his chin, looking confused once again. "Don't you think that if you used the weapons, you could get rid of the monsters before they grow?"

Everyone was silent for a moment. "Huh; that would be more efficient," Billy mused.

"You guys," said Tommy, beginning one of his motivational and highly cliched speeches. "We shouldn't have to resort to our weapons so fast. We each have the power to take down the monsters in ourselves and our skills. Don't rely so heavily on technology; it's just a perk. After all, why did Zordon choose us in the first place?"

A sense of overwhelming confidence and motivation filled Rocky – and it would forever be unknown as to why. "You're right, Tommy! I'm being so silly!"

"Now that we've drifted away from the topic of weapons, it would be a most appropriate time to go to the park to practice our battle techniques," Billy interjected, looking a little weary after the comment on technology – seeing as technology turned out to be the force that destroyed their foes in the end – but he thought it best not to comment.

They made the short walk to the park, discussing their extra-circulars on the way. Something suddenly struck Kimberly, and she paused. "Wait – did you guys ever work out where you're staying?"

The three in question exchanged hesitant looks. "Well...staying, yes. A family friend lives on the edge of town; she's letting us stay there until we figure stuff out. If we ever," Adam answered. His expression was discontented.

"Your parents are cool with that? What are they gonna do?" Tommy questioned.

Aisha let out a loud sigh. "It took all of us – and a couple of letters from our teachers – to convince them that the transfer was a good idea. They're still not on board with the fact that it was an 'immediate' transfer. But my parents are making an effort to move here permanently, which is great."

"My parents are just kinda confused about the whole thing," said Rocky. "I mean, they're all for it, but they still haven't gotten passed the 'why'. I think they'll move out here too once they find a good house and stuff."

"And my parents...well, that's a story for another time," Adam added, now looking purely uncomfortable. Rocky and Aisha adopted similar looks, and the rest of the team vowed to stay away from that subject for awhile, even though they were awfully intrigued.

"Well, if you're ever in need of somewhere else to stay, our homes are always open, right guys?" said Kimberly. The others smiled warmly and nodded, met with a jumble of thank yous and 'oh, I could never' and mostly notably 'only if you have enough bread and bologna'. When they reached their destination – a lush, flat area underneath a big oak tree – Tommy stood in front of the group and began to show off. ...Oh, excuse me; I mean demonstrate his particular martial arts technique.

"Alright; everyone go one by one and demonstrate how they fight. Then we can maybe work on some kind of strategy where we pair off based on how similar our fighting styles are, so we can fight more effectively and pack a more powerful punch. Sound good?" The others didn't really know just how effective this plan would be, but it sounded smart and legitimate, so they agreed to go along with it. However, in the middle of Aisha's demonstration, their communicators went off.

"Looks like it's already time to be put to the test." Tommy was the one to answer the call – as always. "What is it, Zordon?"

"Rangers!" Alpha's voice came over the speaker even louder than usual. "You must teleport to Angel Beach immediately! There's an emergency!"

"Shouldn't we teleport to the Command Center first?"

"I'm afraid there's no time. The Power Eggs washed up on the lake, and Zedd has sent his Putties down to retrieve it! If Rita promised chaos with them, imagine what Zedd will do!"

"Don't worry, Alpha; we'll keep them safe." Tommy cut off the transmission and looked knowingly at the rest of the gang. "Alright, Rangers. It's morphin time!"

Not a minute later, they were on the sand in full uniform. A group of about ten Putties surrounded the familiar chest. That's all they were doing; just standing around it (some dancing) and staring as if it was the most interesting thing they had ever seen (which it probably was). How considerate of them not to try to take the chest to the moon before the Rangers had a chance to stop them.

With a roaring battle cry, the team charged into the fray. After that, it was a flurry of colors, chops, and roundhouse kicks. The fight didn't have the opportunity to go any further, for two Putties who had slyly escaped the attack carried off the chest and were teleported back to the moon. The Rangers didn't notice until they destroyed the remaining Putties.

"They stole the chest!" Rocky yelled. "Now what?"

"We'll get the chest back," said Tommy, perhaps a little too confident. "They need a child to open the chest anyway."

Tommy had forgotten how easy it had been for Rita to obtain he child, because as he said this, Zedd was already surveying Angel Grove for the most innocent child he could find.

"All these children are so filled with good and purity; it makes me sick!" Zedd snarled. "Once I crack these eggs, that won't be a problem anymore." He finally came upon the park, and his visor locked onto a pudgy little boy bashing his weathered teddy bear against the grass. "Ah, what a delightful little delinquent. Yes; he's perfect! And I know just how to get him to come to help me..."

* * *

><p>Georgie was the boy in question, and as he abused his toy, Schuyler sat only inches away, pulling grass out of the ground.<p>

"I'll never come up with a story." She grumbled. "I've never come up with one idea of my own for the Temp; they always tell me what to write. Don't they know about the First Amendment – freedom of press and all that jazz? Writers should write what they want." She sprawled out on the ground. "If writers could think of anything. ...Say, little bro, I could interview you. 'Fluff Abuse: How I Took My Pre-Childhood Rage Out on My Plush Toys'."

Georgie looked at her curiously. "The grass smells funny." He cackled.

"That it does, George. That it does. Maybe I could write one on grass. Teenagers like grass in this town, right?" She sighed. "God, to quote Melvin – where's that whopper story? Where's the idea that'll just...I dunno, hit me like lightning?"

As if the day was not already ironic enough for all of Angel Grove, a suspicious bolt of lightning hit Georgie's teddy, and within seconds, it grew to person-size. Not to mention, it grew little fingers and toes, seams and stitches all over, and glowing red-eyes. Schuyler was in absolute shock.

"...I don't even..._what_?" she breathed out, jumping to her feet and holding Georgie to her. "You're...you're like..._Frankenteddy._"

"A der der der!" the...thing chuckled, having a voice that sounded like a cross between Barney and a robot. Which made him absolutely unnerving. "It's Tremor Teddy, actually! But you're a good guesser! You get a gold star!" He held out his arm, and through a torn seam, a gigantic golden star sticker came flying out at Schuyler. She ran like a maniac trying to get away from it, until it caught up to her and bound her to a tree.

"Oh, you are _kidding_ me," she rasped as she tried to pry the thing off her, but it was surprisingly sticky and solid for a sticker. "Georgie, run! Go get help! Go look for the ice cream man, just do something away from here!" Unfortunately, Georgie just stood there, looking up at the monster in awe. "Georgie, don't go near him!" Schuyler yelled, already out of breath from her effort to free herself. "I swear, Teddy Whatever, if you harm one hair on his head, I will tear you apart. With my teeth."

"Oh, big sister; you're so silly! Come on, special friend! We're going to go have some fun with Master Zedd!" said the Tremor Teddy, holding out his 'hand', and the seam of his mouth twisting into an off-kilter smile.

"My teddy! Let's go have fun!" Georgie said with all the enthusiasm his little body could muster. He took his hand and began to stroll off with him, with Schuyler yelling his name and trying her best to resist cursing out the monster. Suddenly, a horde of colors appeared in her peripheral vision, and she nearly lost it.

"Not so fast, you overgrown sack of fluff!" the White Ranger declared, as he and the rest of the Rangers did some ridiculous poses.

Georgie gasped. "The Power Rangers!" He managed to sound even more excited than before.

"Have you come to play with us too?" asked the Tremor Teddy, his voice now transitioning to that of a robotic clown. "I brought along some extra special friends for you!" A horde of Putties appeared behind him, and immediately engaged in a fight with the Rangers. Schuyler had to admit that seeing an actual comic book-esque fight in the flesh was awesome. Even if it was the Rangers, and she was still confined to a tree. Speaking of which...

"Uh, help?" She flailed her arms around. "I'm being stuck to this tree by way of a giant super-glue sticker! ...Wow, that sounds insane."

"Hold on, I'll get you out!" called the Pink Ranger, reducing the Putty she was fighting to clay and running to her aid. She swiftly took her Blade Blaster out of her holster and pointed it at the sticker. "Hold still; I'll have to cut the edges off."

"Um...o-okay." Schuyler squeaked, but she managed to stay still as the blaster worked its magic. She scrutinized the suit. "Doesn't the skirt make it hard to kick stuff?"

"Nope!" The sticker fell to the ground. "There you go!" She ran off just as fast as she had come.

Schuyler was frozen in shock once more. "A Power Ranger saved me...and talked to me!" Her moment of being starstruck didn't last long – thankfully – and she cleared her throat and stretched her limbs to appear nonchalant. She ran toward the commotion intent on helping, but upon realizing she would just be restrained again, she watched. Poor Georgie was being traded around from Putty to Putty, and the Pink, Yellow, and Black Rangers fought of as many as they could while trying to get to him. The Tremor Teddy was being kicked and shoved around by the White, Red, and Blue Rangers, but from the looks of it, they weren't doing much damage.

"He's absorbing all our hits!" she heard the Blue Ranger yell.

"I don't know why you kids are trying to hurt me; I love you all very much!" said the Teddy, as he scooped the three of them into a bone-crushing bear hug. They wheezed and squirmed and called for help, and Schuyler couldn't help but let out a 'hrmph'. She bet the city government hadn't prepared them for this kind of foe.

"Hold on guys!" the Black Ranger yelled. He pulled an object that appeared to be some kind of high-tech axe out of thin air, and leaped at the monster. He sliced it right down the middle of its back, and as it began to split in two, white fleece spilled out. _Okay_, she thought. _That was badass._

"Awe, you split my heart in two." The Teddy whimpered, still – somehow – living. "You all should feel how I feel!" Large clumps of fleece flew at the four male Rangers, and wrapped around their necks and began to suffocate them. The monster sure was resourceful when it came to clamping things. Still, once all the Putties were gone, the girls sliced through the wool with the blade portion of their Blasters with ease and grace. Many questions arised at how _fluff_ was so impossible to get off, but Schuyler had been pinned down with a sticker, so she couldn't really talk.

"Winter hibernation's come early, bear! Rangers, assemble the Power Blaster!" said the White Ranger, as the other five pulled weapons out of thin air as well.

"Power Axe!" said the Black Ranger, re-purposing his axe as a cannon and throwing it up into the air. Where it stayed – somehow.

"Power Bow!" said the Pink Ranger, throwing her bow on top of the axe.

"Power Daggers!" said the Yellow Ranger, throwing her knives underneath the bow – also taking on some blaster qualities.

"Power Lance!" said the Blue Ranger. Schuyler spent more time trying to figure how his weapon was called a lance when it looked nothing like what she thought a lance was to notice where it went on this contraption.

"Power Sword!" said the Red Ranger, jumping up into the air and smacking down his weapon on top of the others. All in all, it was a pretty awesome device. He brought it back down to the ground, and before the abomination even got a chance to offer some parting words, he was shot down by an intense power beam. Just like that, he was gone; no explosion of fleece or anything.

"Yayayay!" Georgie clapped and jumped around, totally oblivious to the fact that he could have been kidnapped. Schuyler ran to him and squeezed him.

"Oh man...you are never getting another teddy bear again. Ever. I'll never be able to look at another teddy again, jeez..." she rasped out, ruffling his hair. "Are you okay?"

"The Power Rangers saved us!" said Georgie, clapping again. Schuyler looked up, only to see that they were all standing over her.

"Yeah...they did." She stood up and cleared her throat. "Um...th-thank you. We were gonners."

"Our pleasure," said the White Ranger, as he leaned down and patted Georgie on the head. "You be careful with your toys, little man."

"Okay, Mr. Ranger." He began to pull grass out of the ground, laughing while he did so. Schuyler smiled ever so slightly.

"Hey, who made your-"

They teleported away in multicolored energy beams. "-weapons." She stood there for a moment, staring at the space they had vacated. God, she really didn't want to support them, but after they had saved her – especially her little brother – she couldn't hate them. Their costumes may have been too flashy for superheroes, but they could really fight – not to mention their weapons. "Looks like I'm gonna end up like everyone else; smitten." She snorted at the thought. "I guess some people who witness these fights do remain undamaged enough to talk about it." She laughed, and sat down next to Georgie once again. Her thoughts began to travel towards Skittles – what with all this exposure to colors – until an idea suddenly planted itself in her mind. "Oh...my god...oh my _god_. I'm gonna come through after all!" She shot up. "Georgie, we're going home."

"But grass!" He looked devastated, and as bad as she felt for shooting down his dreams after what he had just been through, she couldn't risk the idea leaving her head so quick.

"You can pull up grass in the backyard, but I have to get to my computer. I think I have a story idea that's gonna save me _and_ the paper! ...Okay, maybe just me; as long as Melvin's on the paper, we're toast. Still; home!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Finally getting to the action! It's amazing what one's brain comes up with at one in the morning. As always, please R & R, folks!


	5. Episode Five

_**5. You've Got To Have Bears**_

The clock ticked slowly away at the end of fifth period, and Schuyler bounced with anticipation as she waited for Chemistry to end. Today's class hadn't gone too well; she spilled liquid gallium on her and Tibby – her lab partner – not causing any harm but staining their clothes. Mr. Wilton – being the tyrant that he was – gave out a pop quiz on the periodic table, which she undoubtedly failed. And she hadn't been paying attention when he explained the experiment they would be conducting, which led to Tibby yelling and whining at her for not knowing what to do and making her do all the work. She spent most of the period photographing the chemicals and the classroom, however, so she was one to talk. As such, after all the staining, berating, and the failing, Schuyler couldn't leave the room fast enough. Still, there was a more positive reason she was so eager to leave: the Temporibus staff met during sixth period.

"The issue's gonna be finished by today," Tibby sneered. "You got anything to offer?"

"Actually, I do – I wrote it all yesterday." Schuyler beamed with pride. "It's pretty much a live report on the – you know, you'll find out when I pitch it."

Tibby rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She lifted her camera to her face. "Could you move out of the way for a sec? The way the light is hitting the shades is _so_ inspiring."

Schuyler groaned as she learned forward so Tibby could indulge in her craft, but as she glanced at the clock, there was only a minute left. Mr. Wilton was talking about a project or something of the sort; she simply tuned him out. What she did hear was the sharp, off-key ring of the bell. In her rush to escape, she tripped and fell over a stool, sending several students toppling onto her. They all groaned and cursed as they lifted themselves up, and Mr. Wilton marched over with a stern look on his face,

"I'm appalled at you all – you should know to exercise proper safety precautions!" He barked. "Be prepared for a quiz on lab saftey sometime soon!" He was met with even louder groaning.

Schuyler scrambled to her feet, and fast-walked out of the class and down the hallway. She nearly had a collision with a couple of teachers and a guy carrying a large stack of books; she considered it a miracle that she managed to duck just in time. She finally reached her locker – one on the bottom, nearest to the water fountain – and she sighed in relief as she fell to her knees and twisted the combination. Unfortunately, it refused to open.

"Oh no – oh please, not now," she muttered, pounding her fist on the door. "My article's in there goddammit!" She retried the combination, but once again, it wouldn't budge.

"Well well; g'day geek." Bulk hovered over her, Skull standing behind him and chewing his gum like a cow. "Having some trouble?"

Schuyler glared daggers at them. "I'm a little too busy for your insults, fellas." She pounded harder on the door, releasing her ill feelings toward the pair.

"Insults? We wanna do no such thing!" he said, feigning offense. He looked at her locker, then nodded at Skull once. Skull got on his knees, directly in front of it, and bashed his head against it. Astonishingly, it opened.

"Uh...th-thank you," Schuyler forced herself to say, getting out her grammar textbook for seventh period. As soon as she dug her article out and placed it on top of the book, Bulk swiped it up and practically pressed it against his face. As Skull tried to get a better look, his head injury caused him to lose his balance and fall to the floor. He got back up swiftly and brushed himself off, attempting to look suave.

"Hey!" she yelped, getting up and attempting to snatch it away from them – but they somehow bested her by simply moving it away every time she reached for it. "Give it _back_. I have to hand that in right now!"

"My little bro was about to be taken out of...blah blah blah, never see him again, blah blah...then suddenly, _they_ were there. The Power-" Skull paused, as both his and Bulk's jaws dropped. "Bulkie, there could be clues in here about who the Power Rangers are!"

"No really, dimwit; don't you know I was thinking that a minute ago?" Bulk clenched the papers in his hands, then sent Schuyler a sharp look. "We open your locker, you give us your article. Fair trade." With that, they ran away, and Schuyler had no choice but to follow them.

She chased them up the stairs, into classrooms, to the outdoor patio, and through nearly every hallway for the passing period and a good ten minutes into class. She hadn't exercised so vigorously in...well, ever; she felt like she was going to pass out, if not sleep for a hundred years. It was a miracle that she caught up with them when the boys reached the library. They were clearly exhausted as well; what had been the point of all this anyway?

"Give. Back. My. Article." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She took off her left sneaker and whacked them with all the strength she had left. They whimpered – both out of pain and her imprinting footprints all over their jackets. They were the first to surrender as they slid down the nearest wall, sprawling out on the dirty linoleum. Bulk released the papers from his grasp, and Schuyler scooped them up triumphantly. She rounded the corner, and leaned against the wall for a rest.

After a few minutes of relaxation, she made the long trek toward the staff headquarters. The door, however, was locked.

"Not again..." she muttered, sparing a knock. Luckily, Lilly poked her head out only a few seconds later.

"Great; you showed up," she said, only slightly sarcastic. She took one long look at Schuyler and grimaced. "You look like hell."

"I've been through hell. Listen, I wrote the-"

"Ah nope – not now! We printed the last of the sports editions today. And you know the rules if you're late on Distribution Day: you have to distribute them to all the slots." She disappeared into the room for a moment, and Schuyler facepalmed.

"Getting all the papers out is gonna take all period. I'm never gonna get to give them my article..." After a minute, the door swung wide open, and Lilly had to catch it with her foot as she came forward holding a stack of newspapers that nearly covered her eyes.

"Good luck, but maybe you'll learn some self-discipline from this!" she said enthusiastically as she handed off the stack. She shut the door, and Schuyler struggled to balance it and keep her own balance. Her first destination was the newspaper rack by the main staircase. The benefit was that she could drop off most of the papers there. The cons were that it was all the way on the other side of the school, and the papers all had to be positioned _perfectly_ – otherwise Melvin would throw a hissy fit. With a sigh, she made her way slowly through the hallways, stalling every time the pile tilted or if she felt she was going to fumble. She even took a wrong turn and was lost for a good while; it seemed the weight was enough to throw off her sense of direction as well.

Relief washed over her when she finally reached the hallway leading to the staircase – coincidentally where her locker was. Perhaps after she got rid of some of the newspapers, she could try banging her head against it. Her frustration peaked when the load teetered dangerously to the side; she nearly fell down with it. By chance, a brightly-dressed group of kids entered the hallway, and they were visibly concerned with what she assumed was her predicament.

"Jeez, lemme help you," the boy dressed in black said, rushing to her aid immediately. He took a good half of the stack into his arms.

"Gosh, thank you so-" She looked up to address him, but she froze completely when she saw his face. He was the most adorable boy she had ever seen. "...much." She spent a few moments drinking in his features, only vaguely hearing his friends yell at him to hurry up.

"Uh..." the boy finally said, looking uncomfortable. "Where are you taking these?"

"Huh?" She was completely out of it, until the voices finally cut through her dreamy haze. "Oh...um...the wooden thing over there." Her gaze was fixed on him all of the twenty seconds it took him to carry the papers over, set them down, and walk away with his friends, smiling at her as he passed.

As she was setting up the newspapers, he was the only thing on her mind. She had even forgotten about her bad day and her article. "Man, do I regret missing school for two days..." she muttered. "He is just...damn. _Damn_." When she filled the stand, she reclined and laid on the floor for awhile. "He's cute _and_ he helped me...I have no chance. Still...there are more nice people here than there are dicks." Her face lit up for only a moment. "Oh who am I kidding; I'll probably just forget about him by tomorrow. ...Nope; I am a teenager. That is impossible."

After she traveled to all the other empty racks in the school – which were all positioned relatively close together, so it wasn't as much of a pain getting out the rest of the papers. When she was finished, she practically floated back to the classroom, and was met at the door by Melvin.

"Took you long enough." He sniffled. "So you have your article?"

"I do." She waved the papers in front of his face.

"This should be promising." He leered and ushered her in. Lilly stood behind his desk – waiting for the pitch – while the rest of the staff was examining and debating over the issue's mock-up. Melvin took his seat, and Lilly adopted a look of encouragement.

"Go for it, Reeves." She said, her voice uncharacteristically soft.

Schuyler cleared her throat. "So, Melvin, you were so urgent about getting the interview with the delegates the night of the reveal because no other media outlet in town would be able to cover it so fast, right?"

"But of course." He stuck his nose up. "We would have succeeded if _you_ hadn't screwed up."

"I was attacked by nature, okay? How many times do I have to say it?" She took a deep breath. "_Anyways_, you know what else the news fails to report on live?"

"Bear attacks," Melvin said with a completely straight face. Lilly raised a brow and gave him a judging glance.

"Um, no; there aren't any bears in Angel Grove." Schuyler chuckled nervously.

"Bear attacks can happen _anywhere_; even a dunce knows that."

"What about in the arctics?" said Lilly, trying to hold in laughter.

"Polar bears. _Duh_."

Schuyler tapped her foot impatiently. "Melvin, I'm trying to talk about my article, and you start going off on _bears_; you're being really unprofessional."

He prickled and was quiet once more. "If there is one thing I'm not, it's unprofessional." Still, he did look a little embarrassed.

"Whatever you say. Alright, so, the subject that they fail to report on live is the Power Rangers." Lilly ears perked. "The papers and the nightly news always give a generic after-action report the day after or two days later. Hell, the news uses the same line to lead into their reports. There has been a reason for that; no one's ever seen these confrontations take place, and whatever source they do get a summary of what happened from fails to provide specifics. So the people of Angel Grove are left mostly in the dark about the Rangers; we just know that they're our heroes and they go out and save our lives pretty much every day." She smiled smugly. "No one saw it live – until yesterday." She handed the papers to Melvin. "What I have there is roughly six pages recounting how my brother's teddy got turned into a monster and how the Power Rangers saved him from getting kidnapped. I included everything I could remember – a good ninety-eight percent of what happened, I'd say – and used sensory language to really make the readers feel as if they're watching the fight. At least that's what I hope they'll get out of it." She swiped some moisture off her forehead, relieved she managed to get through all of that without gasping for air.

Lilly's eyes were wide with excitement as she leaned over her seat to read the story; Melvin was skimming it, but he certainly didn't look bored. "It appears your opinion of the Power Rangers has changed already, hrm?" Schuyler just shrugged. "...As much as it pains me to say it, you may have something here, Schuyler." With a huff, he held her sheets out to her. "We'll print it as the main editorial; you're welcome."

She sputtered. "R-really?" She squealed and jumped in place. "Oh, thank you, Melvin! I'm sure this will get more readers; I'm _sure_!" She ran to the nearest computer and began to retype it.

"That was awfully nice of you, Glauss," said Lilly, getting up and stretching, looking over at Schuyler amusedly. "You _are_ Glauss, right?"

He sighed and put his head in his hands. "If this doesn't get us more readers, I don't know what will." His expression suddenly changed from distress to optimism. "Bears!" He rushed to another computer.

"Yep; still him." With a light chuckle, she tossed some hair over her shoulder and went to oversee the mock-up.

* * *

><p>The Cremelle Airport – serving both Angel Grove and Stone Canyon – was bustling on this particular Wednesday. Not that there were many people going or coming in; the locals just wanted to see their chosen delegates off to a safe flight.<p>

The three had been sitting in the waiting area for about an hour now – still two to go. The supportive crowd had dissipated by now, and only a couple of stragglers and Ernie still hung around. "The food's gonna be great in Switzerland," he said, grinning. "And just think of all the culture you'll get to taste in the other countries you'll visit!"

"Yeah...it's gonna be great," said Jason, with only a little bit of enthusiasm. Zack and Trini looked just as half-hearted.

"What's up?" Ernie asked, sitting down next to Zack. "You guys should be happy; this is the opportunity of a lifetime."

"We are," said Trini. "We're just gonna miss Angel Grove a _lot_."

"Oh nonsense." Ernie smiled at her sympathetically. "All birds have to fly away from the nest some time and explore the world. This is an amazing experience, and it's gonna turn you all into mature young adults. So don't worry about the ol' nest; it'll be waiting for you for when you come back."

Their expressions shifted to sentimentality. "Man, Ernie; you always know what to say," Zack said, clapping his hand on Ernie's shoulder. The bittersweet moment only lasted for a few seconds before a commotion began outside. The trio rushed to the large window looking over the entrance, only to find a monster terrorizing the civilians. Upon closer inspection, they realized it looked awfully familiar.

"Zack...isn't that one of the badges you gave out to your class last night?" Trini questioned, sparing a cautious look at him. "...Weren't you wearing one in?"

He looked down at his chest, and his eyes widened. "Damn! I didn't pin it secure enough!"

"It's too late to worry about that now," Jason urged, pounding his fist in his palm. "We have to get down there."

"Jason, I don't know if that's such a good idea." Trini rubbed her arms. "We can't just stand around and do nothing, but at the same time, we can't do much without our powers."

"We could try," Zack suggested. "I'm responsible, anyway."

Trini sighed. "Alright, let's try." They ran as fast as they could through the terminals, down the escalators, and outside. They slowly approached the giant pentagonal badge, which was wearing a brown Stetson, a tribal poncho, and cowboy boots.

"This town ain't big enough for the four of us," he drawled in what was perhaps the worst Southern accent known to man, "which is why Mister Zedd sent me down to give you buckaroos a mighty fine run outta town."

They saw their steely glares reflected in the oddly-reflective emblem. "If there's anyone who's going to be run out, it's you," said Jason, cocking his fist.

"Oh, I'm rattlin' in my boots," the monster teased, chuckling. "I'd ask ya to draw, but you got no weapons no more." He chuckled even louder, took out his blaster, and shot at them twice. They were hit hard and fell to the ground.

"That hurt almost as much as his double negative," Trini groaned out, clutching her arm as she tried to lift herself up.

"Okay, we're not equipped for this," said Zack, managing to sit up and help her.

"I know this is tough without our powers, but as long as we're the only ones who can defend against this guy, we have to do our best. Standing and getting shot at while some innocent person can get away is good enough." Jason stood. "Do your worst, monster!"

"It's Sheriff Reflector to you, varmint," he yipped, galloping toward him. Zack and Trini stood quickly, and they began to brawl. While their hits weren't that effective on him, they managed to get a few good ones in, and even knocked him to the floor at one point.

When he finally reached for his blaster, Zack beat him to the punch and yanked it away. "Whoops; think fast!" he goaded, and fired. The sheriff was knocked to the ground once again, this time with a crack in his badge. "There's a new man in town now."

"Gettin' wise with me, youngin?" He got up, wabbling a little. "Well gee, it looks like it's your lucky day!" He reached under the poncho and pulled out three horseshoes. He threw them at the trio, and each one of them hit their abdomens like heavy punches, and while they managed to stay on their feet, it took all of their willpower to do so. "That's what happens when ya try to show up the law." He grabbed his blaster and shot it up at the sky.

A chorus of "HIYA"s came from behind him as six pairs of feet kicked him in the back, sending him stumbling forward. "I'm gonna fill up the county jail at this point!" He laughed crazily as he faced the Rangers.

"Don't you know it's dangerous to play with guns like that?" said Tommy, charging at him and striking his wrist with Saba. It fell right off, still holding the gun.

"Hey! That was my craps hand!" He pulled out six more horseshoes and flung them at the Rangers, who all managed to dodge them effortlessly. "Doggonnit, you ain't playin fair like your comrades!"

Kimberly and Billy ran to help the trio. "Are you guys okay?" Kimberly asked, helping Trini straighten up.

"We were wondering when you guys were gonna show up," said Zack, smirking.

"This guy isn't too tough, but he's a pain in the ass," Jason remarked, cracking his neck.

"I find his accent and use of sterotypical Western jargon most offensive," said Billy, releasing his hold on Zack and Jason.

"Well, we're gonna go take him out." Kimberly stopped as she and Billy were running back to the others. "...One last takedown as a team?" She held her hand out to them.

The three looked at each other, then readily took her hand all at once. "Let's do it," said Trini. They joined the fray, and with all nine Rangers laying into him, the sheriff didn't stand a chance. After only a few minutes, he was reduced to dragging himself across the ground to move.

"Let's take him down with our Power Blasters!" Rocky called. The eight of them sans Tommy un-holstered their blasters, Jason, Zack, and Trini placing their hands on Rocky's, Adam's, and Aisha's respectively.

"Power Rangers!" They yelled in perfect unison. "Fire!" And fire they did, Sheriff Reflector being reduced to a cracked badge in an awesome spectacle of smoke and sparks.

"Well, that's one novelty I'm never buying again," said Zack, picking it up and throwing it into the trash bin nearby. With a laugh, the Rangers powered down and walked with them to the waiting area. For another two hours, they sat together and talked about the past, present, and their hopes for the immediate future. Their hearts grew heavy when the woman working the P.A. system announced that their flight was now boarding.

"Well...off we go," Jason said, actually looking a little glassy-eyed. Kimberly noticed this immediately – large crocodile tears already rolling down her face – and initiated a group hug for the original six. Rocky, Adam, and Aisha stood awkwardly off to the side, unsure whether they should let the moment be private or look upon the love, until Kimberly motioned for them to join.

They stood there for a minute that went by far too quick for their liking.

"We'll be back in a couple months, a year at most," Trini said, choking up. She sent an especially forlorn look to Billy, who returned it almost as intensely. "We'll call and write and everything."

"Please do," Kimberly slurred, the lump in her throat preventing her from speaking clearly. "I'd hug you guys again, but I wouldn't let go." Tommy hugged each of them for her – the one with Jason notably being the longest – then wrapped his arms around her, giving her something to hold.

Billy went next, Jason and Zack reminding him to practice and punching him playfully. Trini hugged him with all her might, and – in a move that surprised him everyone – kissed him long on the cheek, causing them both to blush. Kimberly's quiet sobs stopped for just a moment as she processed what she saw. To avoid any more awkward silence, Trini turned to the Stone Canyon trio, with the other two following suit.

"You'll be amazing," Trini said simply. Aisha grinned and pulled her into a hug.

"I wish we had gotten to know you guys better," said Adam, frowning. "We'll be missing out."

"Hey, you guys can write and call us too! We wanna hear how things are going for you, and learn more about you," Zack said eagerly, clasping Adam's hand and pulling him into a brohug. Jason and Rocky looked at each other, shrugged, and hugged as well.

"Go do great things for world peace...and stuff," said Rocky, causing everyone to laugh lightly. "What, I was being serious!"

The P.A. called for final boarding, and the three lifted up their bags and suitcases. Jason held his hand to his forehead in a salute, Zack bowed, and Trini just smiled.

"May the power protect you guys – always," said Tommy, and with one last look, the three were gone. The air was dismal, but the small spark of opportunity and new beginnings managed to give them enough willpower to leave the building and go to the Youth Center for some much-needed pick me ups.

Meanwhile, a mother and her two young sons were arriving at the airport with an excessive amount of luggage. While the mother was trying to haul the bags onto a cart – silently hoping that an attendant would come along and help her – her sons were running around and getting in her way.

"Tyler! Dougie! _Please_ play somewhere else, mommy's trying to carry these heavy bags," she pleaded, but they continued to play. She lost her footing and collided with the garbage bin, causing it to fall and the contents inside to spill out onto the ground. "Boys! See what happens when you don't listen!"

Dougie gasped and crouched down in front of the garbage. "I'm sorry, mommy."

Tyler looked less submissive. "Yeah, sorry," he forced himself to say.

"It's okay." She stopped dragging her things and huffed. "I'm gonna go find an attendant. Stay out of the can, boys!"

Dougie had been leafing through it, but stopped. Until he saw something shiny. "Hey, Tyler, look what I found!" He pulled it out and examined as his brother walked up behind him.

"What is it?" Tyler asked, looking at it in wonder.

"It's a badge! For playing police!" He took off the dirt residue with his thumb, then pouted. "Aw, it's cracked."

"Eh, we'll make it work," Tyler assured him, pulling him up by the arm. Suddenly, the badge began to shimmer and glow, and in a flash of light, the boys were on the ground, unconscious. The badge clattered to the floor, still glowing. In another flash, it disappeared.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Oh, torturing innocent children for the purposes of exposition; I love it! And with this chapter, the Classic era ends; damn peace conference. Also, a shout-out to my new reviewers; you are beautiful people. As always, please R & R, folks! It calms the rabid plot bunnies!


	6. Episode Six

_**6. Beginnings, Ends, and Then There's Melvin**_

The rest of the school day went by without hindrance. Schuyler spent lunch in the library doing homework – as always – and while Ms. Appleby's English class dragged on due to her inability to teach anything above second-grade grammar, it was easy. She couldn't help but notice that a whopping nine seats had been vacated; three that had belonged to the delegates (who had left for Switzerland that day), but there was no excuse for the other six. Despite having been in the class for awhile now, she couldn't put her finger on who they belonged to. Then again, she barely ever rose her head from her desk, and only looked at Ms. Appleby when she was called. Oh, what an introverted life she led; the funny part being that she could change it any time she wanted.

When the final bell rang, Schuyler couldn't help but feel nervous. She was due to work at the Juice Bar now, a place teeming with other kids, sweat, and..._fitness_. Not to mention that she was unfamiliar with the place; the Monday night party had been the first time she ever went.

"God, what was I thinking..." she said, opening her locker with her head. "I'm gonna have to clean up peoples' garbage and ask them what they want, and they're gonna demand stuff from me, and I'm gonna crack under the pressure and trip and drop their order and...gee, Sky, get a hold of yourself." She slapped herself lightly, retrieved her Chemistry notes, and slammed the door shut. "Think of Gramps's Gran Torino...two-thousand bucks and it's yours, aw yeah." She took a deep breath and stood. "I can do this...I can do this."

She went outside and unlocked her bike from the rack, smoothing out her Ghostbusters t-shirt and tugging on her jean jacket. "I _can_ and _will_ do this." She chanted this as she got on and rode away. She resigned to doing so only in her head as she reached the Youth Center, due to her voice growing so loud that people began to stare. However, when she entered the building and saw it already bustling with kids, any confidence she had mustered disappeared.

"...I _can't_ do this." She spun around to leave, only to be nearly trampled down by the girl's volleyball team. "This place is dangerous!"

By chance, Ernie crossed her path holding a tray full of sandwiches. "Hey Schuyler! Ready to get started?"

_Crap on a stick._ "...Yeah."

"Great; go ahead and wait behind the bar; I'll be with ya in a second." He took the sandwiches over to a group of boys sparring on the mats as Schuyler walked begrudgingly to the bar. The kids who were sitting there looked up at her briefly, then went back to their business.

"Alright then," said Ernie, hopping up the steps. "I'm gonna start you out making the smoothies today, if that's cool." Schuyler just nodded. "Put this on." He handed her a white apron. "So, we got a couple of menu-item smoothies, the ingredients of which are on this paper here." He reached under the counter and pulled out a laminated list of all the drinks and their ingredients. "Most of the time, customers go for the Smooth-Your-Own Smoothie-" he chuckled "-so you'll just have to go from scratch."

He stepped back and motioned to the racks under the counter. "All your non-refrigerated items and spices are down here; people don't normally ask for 'em, but sometimes these just add a nice, extra flavor to both the drinks and the food." He took her into the back room – a sort-of makeshift kitchen – and opened the large fridge. "All of your fruits, veggies, dairy, meats, sweets, the works. Each box is labeled with what's inside to make it easier and faster to get 'em."

He took her back to the counter. "The blender is pretty new – it even has a 'smoothie' setting, so just use that. When its ready, pour it into a cup – they're under here." He took a bright green plastic cup out from underneath. "If there aren't any out, they're usually by the sink; either in need of washing or drying. Last thing; customers usually come up to order smoothies, but occasionally orders will come from the tables; I'll write 'em down for ya then. Aaand that's about it. Got it all?"

Schuyler just stood there, her mouth slightly open and her expression blank. "Uh, yeah; got it _all_." She tapped her head with her index finger.

"Great; then go for it!" He gave her a thumbs up. "I'll be checking up on you from time to time."

"Yep yep." He walked over to a nearby table, and she whimpered. "Why couldn't he have put me on dishwashing duty..." She huffed and put on the apron, only to have it be too small for her and unable to tie in the back. _Greeeat._

Her first customer came all too fast for her liking; one of the girls on the volleyball team, and a bodybuilder at that. She made Schuyler feel all the more self-conscious about herself and her apron. "I'll have an orange muscle shake, please," she asked in a gruff voice.

"Muscle shake...right." Schuyler pulled out the laminated sheet and searched for the ingredients. When she found them, she smiled apologetically at the girl. "Uh, gimmie a couple minutes; it's the first time I'm doing this." The girl merely shrugged, and Schuyler retreated into the back room. She opened the fridge and gathered what she needed into her arms. "Two peeled oranges, muscle milk, half a passionfruit, and...yeah," she recited, making sure she had everything. She scurried back out, threw the fruit in the blender, poured in a cup of milk, put on the cover, and turned it on. She ducked behind the counter, half-expecting the machine to explode, but when the heterogeneous mixture turned into an orange slush, she stood and looked at the blender in awe.

"Did I _not_ screw up?" She turned it off, took off the lid, and poured the liquid into a cup. "Here you go." She gave it to the girl and wrung her hands together as she took a sip.

"Hm; not bad for a first-timer," said the girl, looking satisfied. "Less milk next time, though." She handed Schuyler three dollars – two to pay for the drink, one as a tip.

She put the money in the cashbox and held the remaining dollar to her chest as the girl smiled and walked away. "Thank you!" She twirled in place. "Five minutes into working and I've already earned my first dollar."

The other girl sitting at the bar looked up from her book and clicked her tongue, pulling on her gaudy pearl necklace. "Can I have a glass of orange juice?" Her voice was high pitched and breathy, grating on Schuyler's ear drums. Still, she forced a smile and went to the fridge to get out the glass pitcher of freshly-squeezed (or so it was labeled) juice. She went back to the front, and as she poured the juice, she couldn't help but feel confident. If she failed to mess up her first attempt – as she tended to do in every endeavor she pursued – there was no way she could do so now; especially in just pouring _juice_.

She proved to be wrong when the group of kids from earlier tat day in the hallway entered the establishment, looking a little melancholy. When her eyes landed on the boy in black, her peripheral vision grew hazy and she became fixated on him. So fixated that she neglected to stop pouring, causing the cup to overflow and liquid to spill everywhere.

"Eeew! What the hell are you doing?" The girl shrieked, jumping away as the juice spilled onto her stool. She hesitantly picked up her book, as it was drenched and dripping.

Schuyler herself had recoiled at the noise, and stared in horror at the mess she made. "I-I'm sorry!" She squeaked, looking around for a rag. "It's my first day and-"

"You think I care?" She stomped her booted foot and shrieked again. "Ugh, you _ruined_ my satin skirt! And my school book; you're gonna pay for both of them!" With a dirty look, she stormed out.

"Stupid stupid stupid..." Schuyler grabbed some flimsy napkins and tried to wipe up some of the juice, but only succeeded in causing more of it to spill on the floor. "This is what happens when I get confident, and when I see _people_." She continued to mutter to herself as she searched in the back room for a rag or at least some towels, but there were none to be found; not even by the dishwasher.

"Yay; I'm gonna get fired!" She put on a fake grin and pumped her fist. "Gee, today has just been one big stick full of crap." She shuffled back out, resigned to her fate. Only to find that the six kids were wiping up all the juice for her with paper towels from the bathrooms. "What in the...what are you doing?" She yelped in disbelief. "You don't have to clean up my mess!"

"We saw what happened and thought you could use some help," the girl in pink said, grinning. "So many accidents happen around here that Ernie always puts the cleaning stuff in the wrong place.

Schuyler blinked, attempting to process their kindness through her brain. _Help...me?_ "Oh. I um...I...thank you. That's really nice of you." She smiled a little, then realized something. "_Oh_; you three-" she pointed to the girl and the boys dressed in white and blue, "-are in my English class; the kids who always answer everything." She smacked her forehead for not being able to realize such an obvious detail before.

They shared knowing looks. "I guess so," said the boy in white, whose hair was longer than all of the girls'. "And you're...Schuyler. You moved here a little while ago, right?"

She grew bashful. "The girl who never opens her mouth." She shrugged. "Considering how much I've seen of Angel Grove and its people, yeah, it's been a _little_ while. ...Feels almost longer, though, for some reason."

"Gosh, I know what you mean," said the girl in yellow. She motioned to the boys in red and black. "We only moved here a couple days ago, but it's felt like forever."

_So that's why I've never seen him before – but I barely leave the house, so how would I have known?_ "Then I shouldn't be talking." She chuckled as she glanced at her "beau" again. "But I still don't know a lot of people; my own fault."

"Some people adjust differently. I swear I pulled out the welcoming committee for you, though..." The girl in pink tapped her chin.

_You did. I was just terrified of your perkiness, so I ran for the hills_. "Eh, it doesn't matter; it's in the past."

"That it is," said the boy in white. "We come here everyday, so if you'll be working, we can talk and hang out. In class and school, too."

"...Really?" She looked positively enthralled. "I...wow; thanks!"

The boy in red rose his brow. "It's not a big deal; what, do people normally avoid you?" Schuyler looked down at the floor. "...Oops. Sorry."

"It is often difficult for newcomers to assimilate into a new community, especially secondary school," said the boy in blue. "Unless one had a readily friendly countenance, the average time it takes to make relations ranges around five months." When met with confused looks from everyone, he sighed. "It's hard making friends when you're new."

Schuyler scrunched her shoulders together and gave them a smile. "Well, it'd sure be swell if you'd be my friends. But I gotta know your names first."

They went from left to right as they each introduced themselves. The boy in white was Tommy, who had to stop himself from introducing the rest of the group; he was clearly the leader. The girl in pink was Kimberly, who finished her greeting with a little wave. The boy in blue was Billy, who smiled slightly and bowed his head to her; his mannerisms and speech made him seem more machine than man. The girl in yellow was Aisha, who ended hers with a wink and a sly smile. The boy in red was Rocky, who also nodded but complimented her shirt. He started to quote the most sexual line from the movie, but stopped and whined when Aisha pinched his arm to make him shut up. And last but not least, the boy in black was Adam, who gave her the most charming, shy smile that her knees nearly buckled. She couldn't help but giggle, until suspicious looks from Aisha and Kimberly brought her back to reality.

"Nice to meet you guys. You all have, um...fine names. Yeah, that's a good adjective." They all chuckled, and she beamed. _Oh gosh, I made them laugh! No one ever laughs at my jokes! These are good people. _"So, I don't suppose you came here to get smoothies?"

"We did, but making new friends is better than smoothies and day." To her surprise, Adam was the one that spoke; he seemed to be the most quiet of the bunch. She smiled dumbly at what he said. _You are literally perfect, how do you even exist?_

"Well...uh..." She struggled to regain her train of thought. "Oh yeah; I'll go ahead and tell Ernie what happened, so he can make you guys something. Hopefully he'll reassign me to a job that I can't turn upside down."

"Make sure it's out here so we can hang out while you work, though!" said Kimberly. "It'd suck if you chose to be a dishwasher or something."

_Well there goes any hope for me not screwing up._ "Okay, I will. I'll be back." She stepped out from behind the bar and had to resist the urge to skip to the exercise machines where Ernie currently was. She couldn't believe that the last chunk of time just happened; she made friends. Nice _pretty_ people wanted to be her friends. The world was loony.

"Reeves!" someone called, and as she reached the mats, she was nearly tackled by a wild Lilly.

"Lilly, what the hell?" She gave her a harsh look. "This is not a jungle, you are not a cheetah, and I am not an antelope. I'd have more fat than meat anyway." She sighed. "And stop gripping my shoulders; your nails are gonna make me bleed!"

"Oh; my apologies." There wasn't even a hint of sarcasm in her voice as she stepped back and kept looking at Schuyler with wide eyes and a crazy smile.

"...Is this a personality that you're trying out? Because you have yet to belittle my abilities and that's kinda freaking me out."

The look disappeared from her face, and she put her hands on her hips and huffed. "I'm not Melvin; I only get pissy at you when you do stupid things." She was her old self for only a second more, then she went back to looking insane. "But now...now you've done something that's possibly _amazing_."

Schuyler blinked. "...Nah, not me."

"Schuyler, I kid you not." She slapped her hands together. "In my seventh period, a couple kids behind me always ask what's going into the new issue a few days or so before publication. Usually they're like 'alright, that's cool' or whatever, and leave it at that. But today...oh man. They were saying that to the advice section, media, style, even the interview with the delegates. And then when I mentioned Melvin's article on bear attacks, they were like 'what the hell, why are you even putting that in?"

"Wait. He actually wrote an article on that?" Schuyler burst into laughter, until another look at Lilly's expression shut her right up.

"Not the point! Anyways, then I mentioned your live coverage of the Ranger fight, and they were 'holy shit, really?', since like you said, all the news does is just announce their victories. And then other people were like 'ohmigod, did you say Power Rangers?', and now the entire class is itching to pick up copies." She thrashed her arms about in excitement. "If their reactions are any indication, pretty much _everyone_ in school is gonna wanna read the Temporibus"

"I...I don't even know what to say." Schuyler couldn't stop from grinning and put her hands to her cheeks. It amazed her how the day had gone from being so awful to being one of the best days of her life. "_My_ article did that?"

"Apparently! And while it's totally not fair and I'm jealous, anything that helps the Temp gets my full support." She gave her a small salute. "So here's the deal; if the paper does as well as we're speculating it will, we want you to write a recurring editorial."

"...What are you saying?"

"You're going to have to report on every fight you come across."

She stood there for a moment, ruminating on Lilly's words. "Ahaha...ha. Tell me you're kidding." Lilly kept her seriousness. "I got lucky in that I was only _pinned to a tree_. Who knows what could happen if I go into the fray like that again just to get a story! ...Unless you want me to get badly injured or killed, and this friendliness is just a ruse."

Lilly rolled her eyes and smoothed down her black slacks. "Don't get involved in the fight; _obviously_. Watch from a safe distance away – behind a dumpster, on a hill, something – and record your thoughts on a tape recorder. If you write, you'll miss things. It's that easy."

"But how am I supposed to report on 'em if I don't know where they'll be?"

"Like I said; only report on the ones that you find. If you go seeking them out, you'll waist time _and_ you set yourself up for a monster to find you first." She put her hand on her shoulder. "I think you can handle it, Reeves."

"Yeah, well I don't." She shrugged her hand off.

"Too bad; it's your new job. Unless you'd rather just be off the paper altogether."

_Oh, screw you._ She bit her lip, trying to figure out the right thing to do. After a few seconds, she groaned and put her arms down. "Fine, I'll do my best. But if I end up in the hospital, you're bringing me gifts. Lots of them."

Lilly clapped, and took her face in her hands. "You're saving the paper, Reeves. Remember that!" With that, she flounced away.

"Welp, what an eventful day this has been." Schuyler sat down on the mat and propped her head up on her hand. "New bruises, new pressure, new friends, and a new job." She chuckled. "Looks like it's time to write my will."

* * *

><p>Up in Zedd's palace on the moon, new things were happening as well; but they were hardly the same as that of a suburban teenager's. All the occupants of the palace were in the throne room; Zedd sitting on his throne, and his subordinates off against the wall. Situated on a cylinder-shaped mound in the center of the room was the chest containing the Power Eggs.<p>

"Now," said Zedd, anticipation abundant in his voice. He opened his hand to reveal Zack's damaged badged. "I call back Sheriff Reflector!" He flung the badge in the direction of the balcony as lightning stuck the staff once more and deflected onto the badge. The monster reappeared once again.

"What in tarnation...oh, masterful Mister Zedd!" He shuffled to the throne and tipped his hat. "What can I do you for?"

He emitted a low growl. "You collected the essence of the children that I requested?"

"I sure did!" He patted his body, and a greyscale image of two little boys appeared in the glint of it. "Them little hush puppies didn't stand a chance."

"Excellent; one monster who has _yet_ to fail me." He flexed his fingers, then swiftly balled his hand into a fist. "Now, open the chest."

"You got it, buckaroo!" He stepped right in front of the chest, but stumbled when Zedd pounded his staff on the floor and glowed red.

"_Don't you dare call me that ever again!"_ He roared. "If I didn't need you for the eggs, I would dispose of you!"

"Lord Zedd is only to be addressed as your superior!" Goldar added, only to make his master grow even more red.

"Don't think you're not above being disposed of!" He rubbed his brain. "Get on with it, Sheriff!"

"It's a good thing we don't call him anything!" Baboo said to Squatt, and they chuckled as quietly as they could. Finster just muttered things like 'oh dear', 'good heavens', and 'Empress would never treat us so shamefully' to himself and shook his head.

The Sheriff's hands retracted into his sleeves, and came back out as skin-colored six shooters. "Time for a showdown." The triggers pulled themselves, and orange beams of energy shot out at the chest. It took a good minute, but the magic lock was finally broken, and the top blew open violently. "...These are some mighty unimpressive eggs, Mister."

Zedd marched to the box and shoved the monster aside. "You have no idea of the power that these eggs posses!" His hands hovered over them, as if he couldn't believe that he finally had them in his grasp. "I'll have the power over two _universes_...Zordon and the Power Rangers have no chance of surviving." He laughed harder than he ever had as he rose his staff as high into the air as he could, and began an unintelligible incantation as bolts of lightning emerged from all over the room.

"Gee; do you think he's scrambling them or cooking them over-easy?" said Squatt, trying to avoid being struck.

All of the bolts came together to form one large, blindingly bright beam, which struck the eggs and reduced the shells to mere pieces. The lightning disappeared and revealed...nothing.

"What is this? A trick?" Zedd ruffled through the shards of the shell, and pounded his fist down on the box. He rose his staff once again – intent on destroying it – until he noticed a flame flickering in the middle on the box. It grew and grew as the seconds passed, until it grew large enough to nearly sear his visor off. Suddenly, sparks flew up from it and made scorch marks on the ceiling. It reduced the shell to ashes, but managed to leave the chest unharmed. When the fire grew as large Zedd himself, the chest fell from the mound, and the flames spread like liquid on the floor. Strangely, they stopped when they formed a peculiar shape. In a flash of red, the flames materialized into a...human being, laying face-down. A man with shoulder-length blond hair with silver streaks, wearing a dark blue cloak with silver sparkles.

"_You_ are the supposed 'universes' contained inside the Power Eggs?" Zedd was beside himself with anger and even utter puzzlement. "Who are you?"

The man weakly rose to his feet. He had sharp but attractive features, and twinkling ice blue eyes. His skin was deathly pale. "I...I don't know." He looked around the room in wonder. "Where am I?"

"I am Lord Zedd, _Emperor of Evil_, and this is my palace." His tone was all threatening.

The man stared at him for a moment, then bowed to him and clasped his hands together above his head. "You freed me from my prison; I am indentured to be your eternal servant."

Zedd was sold. "Servants are always welcome." He chuckled, then pounded his staff on the ground. "The quest for the Power Eggs has proven futile; I've been exhausted. Everyone, to bed!" Everyone promptly left, save for the man and the sheriff, who was dawdling by the balcony.

"...Making monsters out of every day objects; even a badge?" The man chuckled low, his tone going from meek and confused to theatrical. "Oh, Lord Zedd, how far you've fallen since last I saw you." He smiled crookedly. "What a waste of space. A pity, too; someone should put the poor dear out of his brainless misery." He snapped his fingers, and a few sparks flew at the Sheriff. When they touched him, they set him on fire, and within only a minute, he was reduced to a melted glob of goo. With another chuckle, he left the throne room, his cloak jutting out like the night sky's reflection in the water.

* * *

><p>A day in the life of Melvin Glauss wasn't an exciting one. He got up, ate corn flakes and blueberries for breakfast, took the bus to school, was harassed on the bus, went through the school day like the misunderstood genius he was, took the bus home, was harassed once more, came home, did homework, and spent the rest of the night mapping out his plans for the Temporibus or what ever scientific endeavor he was currently pursuing. Believe it or not, he was perfectly content with the life he led. But on this particular Wednesday, he learned something valuable; the day things go differently than planned, interesting things happened.<p>

So, there was a chance to save the Temporibus yet. He had to admit, he wasn't loving the idea that it hadn't been his efforts to change reader interest, but as long as the paper stayed afloat he wouldn't complain too much. After all, it was his baby; probably the only thing he felt he could rightfully claim possession over (though in the opinion of everyone who worked under him, that was hardly the case). After receiving the news from an overly-hyper Lilly (which he didn't mind, because she was so blinded by excitement that she _touched_ him), he went home with a smile on his face, and actually managed to tune out the taunts of his designated bullies. Yes, today was a very good day indeed.

After finishing his homework, he resisted the urges to begin planning the next issue. He decided to be spontaneous and spend his free time re-reading _Atlas_ _Shrugged_. Always a fun read. He was already on chapter two by the time dusk fell; his conscience couldn't help but bug him about how he was wasting valuable time. "Life calls for being spontaneous sometimes," he said aloud. "One never knows what will happen!"

As if on cue, the sound of something landing in the ground came from just outside his window. There was some sort of electrical surge, and suddenly, the tiny bush shaped like a pacifier that grew outside his room grew larger than his house, and cast a shadow over him. "What the devil?" He got up and pressed his oily face against the glass, only to be met with a sight that he wasn't sure to perceive as real or just an illusion. He scrambled to lift the frame – the task being trying on his scrawny muscles – and when he did, he dove through and rolled out onto the grass. He approached the extra-terrestrial object with the utmost caution, and only reached out a finger to see if it was able to be touched. When he felt the sensation of hard, cold metal, he grabbed it with both hands.

"I can't believe it...Rita Repulsa's _staff_. What power this must posses if it can do that." He motioned to the giant bush. He looked in both directions and pulled the staff out of the ground. "I gotta hide it." He went back to his window and carefully slid the staff in first, then followed after it. He looked around for a good place to store it; the biggest place was his closet, and he made a home for it behind his pants. He slammed the door closed, and let out a long breath. "I can't ever use it; must only admire." As such, he promptly went back in the closet, intent on examining it's every ridge and contour.

From outside, his father let out a loud groan. "Melvin, have you been conducting experiments on the plants again?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** And there you have it! The last chapter to set up the storyline. From here on out, I'll be writing my chapters in accordance with the episodes, until the point where the AU will really begin and things go crazy! But that's a long time coming, so enjoy the relative normalcy - for now. Pleeease R & R, folks!


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